


You Are My Flower

by eu4oria



Category: LOONA (Korea Band)
Genre: F/F, lipves - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-08
Updated: 2021-01-16
Packaged: 2021-03-09 22:15:23
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 86,860
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27953747
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eu4oria/pseuds/eu4oria
Summary: A story about two college students, an aspiring basketball player, and an aspiring med student who wants to hopefully become a surgeon one day.Jungeun is a tough shell to crack, she’s reserved, she’s smart, and stays to herself.Sooyoung is the opposite, in some ways, she wears her heart on her sleeve. She’s confident, arrogant even, and a romantic at heart.How will the two balance out each other?
Relationships: Ha Sooyoung | Yves/Kim Jungeun | Kim Lip
Comments: 20
Kudos: 163





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So.. I like lipves too. Big deal. Besides, It seems lipves thrived a lot more this era, and there isnt a big influx in their fics. So I decided to take on the task to please everyone. I hope you enjoy, it is my first time writing for them, so I hope I meet everyones expectations.

* * *

“You’re not staying on the campus huh?” The taller girl asked the blonde. 

“Nope. My parents don’t really want me on campus..” Jungeun admitted, overlooking the room with 2 beds on each side of the room. “They like when I'm holed up in the house.”

“Right. Forgot about your bible thumping parents.” Exy laughed, sitting on her bed. “Well, at least I’ll get to see you during class.” 

“What makes you so sure of that?” 

“We literally have a class together. How’d you forget that fast?” Exy pushed her lightly, tossing her suitcase onto her designated bed. 

Jungeun shook her head, leaning against the wall patiently for her friend to finish. Jungeun actually planned to stay on campus since she transferred over recently from a different college. It didn’t have the major she was interested in anymore and due to her good grades and credits she was accepted into the school. She stayed on campus for her freshman year and to be fair she didn’t mind it much. It was better than being stuck in the house with her family. 

And she made plenty of friends. Some that she planned to keep in touch with even now.

“Come. There’s more to see.” Exy smiled.

* * *

“Ignore her.” Heejin said calmly, turning Sooyoung away from the girl who walked by with 4 other girls surrounding her. Sooyoung wished her life wasn’t a cliche, but it quite literally was. The seething ex-girlfriend that squirmed her way back into Sooyoung’s life whenever she possibly could. She winked at the girl that stood by her friend with blonde highlights. “You know how she gets.” 

“It’s been months. I don’t get why she’s still being that way.” 

“You know how she is. Doesn’t like being in the wrong… or being put on the spot.” Heejin muttered.

“Should’ve thought about that before she cheated on me.” The taller girl laughed bitterly. “Hey, you joining the basketball team next year?”

Heejin laughed, shoving Sooyoung lightly. “You ask that every year. It’s not happening. I’ll stick to volleyball.” 

“Gay girl sport.” 

“And basketball isn’t?” 

Sooyoung rolled her eyes as they were joined by their other friend. Jinsoul. The stunning girl that Sooyoung once had a crush on before they got really close. They hooked up once after a party and never spoke of it afterwards. Thankfully it didn’t damage their friendship at all, and it was a silent mutual agreement that it wouldn’t happen again. “What are you two talking about?” Jinsoul cheerily questioned.

“Sooyoung’s bullying me into joining the basketball team!” Heejin jokingly whined, and Sooyoung scoffed.

“Don’t worry. She’ll give up eventually.” Jinsoul assured, hugging the both of them. “Don’t ask me either, I’m joining the debate team this year.” She smiled.

“Debate team? What happened to cheer?” Sooyoung questioned.

“I can do both.” Jinsoul responded with a shrug. 

“Yeah good luck with that.” Heejin laughed. Sooyoung watched as a small group of people walked by them, and two other girls trailing behind them. One of which caught her eye. The blonde hair trailing behind her from the wind that blew. She was sure the two girls beside her were speaking but she was too enthralled by the sight in front of her. And she wasn’t sure if it was a figment of her imagination or if time really did slow down when the woman turned in her direction. Their eyes connected for a brief moment, and the blonde shyly looked away, turning back to her friend as they walked off. 

But Sooyoung’s eyes followed her, leaning against the stone railing that led to the sports building. Heejin and Jinsoul took notice as well, giving each other a knowing look. “I know that look.” Jinsoul pointed out with a smile, getting the red haired girl’s attention. 

“That poor girl isn’t going to catch a break now.” Heejin added on.

“What? I was just looking.” Sooyoung defended.

“We all know looking is never _just looking_ when it comes to you.” Jinsoul laughed and Sooyoung rolled her eyes. “But I have to go. Class starts in about 10 minutes for me and it’s on the other side of campus so…” 

“Bye Soulieee.” Heejin smiled, hugging her.

“Bye Heekie. Sooyoungie… be good.” Jinsoul pointed at her with a wink and Sooyoung scoffed jokingly. 

“And then there were two.” Heejin mentioned as they stood and watched everyone walking throughout the campus. Some sat underneath a tree for some shade while they read a book or did something on their laptops. Sooyoung only had one more class that day, and it wasn’t for another hour. So she usually just hung out on campus. She studied biology, chemistry, and psychology. She majored in neuroscience, although it wasn’t really something she planned on pursuing much. She just did it to please her parents. 

She got a full ride scholarship for sports, and even if she didn’t, her parents would’ve paid for her anyway. Her father was a co-owner to a billion dollar company that created weapons while her mother was the head of a taxing company. 

They even let her stay in their second house while she attended college. Her younger brother stayed with her parents. Sunwoo. He played football but he didn’t go to college for it. He eventually gave up on it, and decided to do music and dance. Sooyoung supported him, but their parents weren’t too supportive of it. They preferred he went to college but there was only so much influence they had over him. At the end of the day, he did what he wanted to. Besides, Sooyoung’s support was all he needed. 

“When do you have practice again?” Heejin questioned as she grabbed her bag from the ground. 

“Later today, around like 3. Why?” 

“Ramen later?” 

“We had that yesterday..” Sooyoung groaned.

“Fine. Then come over to my dorm and I’ll make something for us to eat.” 

“You could always just say that you miss me.” Sooyoung teased and Heejin rolled her eyes as she threw her bag strap over her shoulder.

“I’ll text you.” She smiled, hugging the taller girl. Sooyoung just nodded and checked the time. She still had some time before class so she decided to go and mess with a few of her other friends on campus until then.

* * *

“That class is so boring.” Exy complained as the two stepped out.

“You expected a biology class to be fun?” 

“To some extent..” The taller girl replied, walking in front of Jungeun and stopping. “What are you going to be doing in the next… hmmm, 30 minutes?” 

“Uh, nothing actually. But I assume I am now…” 

“Well you see— my girlfriend is on the basketball team and their practice starts in like 15 minutes so—“

“So you want me to come?”

“Yeah.” She smiled, holding Jungeun’s hands in hers. She could tell the blonde couldn’t say no, so she smiled even wider, pulling her along. 

_**//** _

Sooyoung walked out onto the court, dribbling the ball easily between her legs and making a shot. The sound of the ball going inside the net was like music to her ears. Her teammate passed her another ball, watching her do the same thing over and over again. Some of her other teammates were doing exercises, running laps around the court or stretching. She already stretched before she even stepped onto the court. 

It wasn’t uncommon for people to come in and watch them practice. She actually got much better at ignoring the people in the stands. She was dedicated to what she did. She’d been playing basketball since she was 9 and she was currently 23. 

She won multiple championships while in middle school and she was the team captain on her high school’s basketball team as well. She led them to a state championship as well. She was just promoted to the captain of her college basketball team last year. She was in her junior year now and she truly believed she could be a professional one day. As corny as it sounds, basketball was her life. And girls too of course. Sooyoung was loyal, but she was also a womanizer. She got anything she wanted, anyone she wanted, and practically could make a girl fall for her with the way she looked at them. She was confident in her looks, her skills, her smarts. She had it all, and to be fair, it was the reason for her ego.

She had the money, the friends, the girls, the popularity. She attended the best schools, attended the best parties. Drank the best alcohol, had the best sex. There was nothing more she wanted or needed. Well, that’s what she told herself.

_**//** _

“Oh! Exy– what are you doing here?” The smaller woman questioned, standing between her and Jungeun. “Oh nevermind. Don’t even have to answer that actually!” She laughed.

“For my girlfriend.” 

“Well I did say you didn’t have to answer.” She walked beside her. “And who is this cute lady?” 

“Oh— Jungeun. This is Bora. You’ll get along well, she’s a med student as well.” She informed, smiling at the both of them.

“Nice to meet you Jungeun.” She smiled, shaking her hand. “Oh, when you get in there, keep your head down. The women's basketball team is full of hungry wolves waiting for prey. Like you!” 

“Don’t scare her.” Exy pushed the girl playfully. “Jungeun.. that’s only like… partly true..” They both laughed as Jungeun stood there with wide eyes. They stepped into the gymnasium, the sound of shoes on the shiny polished wood floor. Exy walked ahead of the two girls, running up to her girlfriend who eagerly ran towards her too. Jungeun watched them kiss and then turned away, looking onto the court. Her eyes fell onto someone who stood on the court, her foot propped up onto the basketball as she pulled her hair back into a ponytail. 

Sooyoung’s eyes looked around the court, smiling when she noticed Bora and her eyes slowly traveling to the blonde beside her. She smiled even wider now, picking up the ball and holding it by her side. 

Jungeun froze when she saw the girl walking over to her. Noticing her beauty the closer she got. That smile on her face barely faltered once she stepped in front of Bora. She pulled the girl in for a hug. “Game this weekend right?” 

“You know it. You’re coming right?” Sooyoung asked, her hand being held by the girl in front of her. Bora was one of Sooyoung’s friends. Definitely not in her circle, but she was someone Sooyoung found herself around very often. 

“How could I miss it?” She smiled, watching as Sooyoung’s eyes eventually found the girl beside her. 

“Sooyoung.” She introduced herself with a cocky smile, reaching her hand out to the tiny girl. “And you beautiful?” 

“J-Jungeun.” She replied nervously, scolding herself for stuttering in front of the pretty girl. She placed her hand into Sooyoung’s, her heart stopping for a brief moment when she watched her hand being lifted to the lips of the red haired girl. Her hands soft on hers and her lips soft and warm on her skin. Jungeun would be a fool to pretend Sooyoung wasn’t attractive. The color of her eyes were brown with the twinkle of a lit galaxy. Her skin was sun touched and her teeth were whiter than anything she’d ever seen. She was perfect, from the outside, and her voice could quite literally make Jungeun swoon if she gave in too easily.

“Nice to meet you Jungeun.” She smiled. Taking in how pretty the girl was. Her perfect skin, her perfect features.. from her eyes, to her nose, to her lips. The blonde hair that caught her attention from afar. The way it complimented her skin. How good she smelled, and how shy her eyes were as they waited for Sooyoung’s next move.

Jungeun felt her body tense up at the teasing giggles beside her. Sooyoung heard a whistle going off, turning to see her coach had arrived finally and was rounding them all up. She turned back to the both of them, releasing her hold on Jungeun’s small hand in hers. She pointed her fingers at the both of them. “I better see you two at the game.” She smiled, turning back around to join her team.

Bora laughed a little louder now, clearing her throat as she patted Jungeun’s back lightly. Snapping her out of the trance Sooyoung put her in. “A wolf.. looking for prey.” She said quietly, leaving the girl standing as she took a seat in the bleachers.

_**//** _

Jungeun sat beside the two girls, her eyes trained on the woman that had her full attention. The way she moved was so fluid, running up and down the court and making shots Jungeun couldn’t even dream of making. She couldn’t deny it, Sooyoung was talented, from what she was seeing anyways. 

She ignored the glances thrown her way from the basketball player, that smile that just reeked of confidence. It didn’t take long before the practice was over. Jungeun found herself doing homework as she sat there. “Ya know… you can relax for a second?” 

“Let her be. She’s top of her class after all.” She heard another girl say, drinking water as her clothes were drenched with sweat. Jungeun just eyed her. “What? Word gets around fast here on campus. This place is like a middle school recess.” She added. 

“Lay off, Bona.” Exy defended.

“Just saying.” She shrugged.

Sooyoung walked over to the floor bench where the players sat, grabbing herself a bottle of water as well. Her eyes traveled up to the top of the bleachers, smiling once she spotted Jungeun again. But Jungeun looked away quickly, turning to her friends beside her. Sooyoung just chuckled to herself. 

“Good shit today SooBoss.” 

“What’d I say about calling me that?” She laughed, pushing her friend away from her. “You better be here tomorrow. _Early_.” She wiped the sweat off of her forehead and neck. 

“You’ll see me at 3:30pm sharp.” The shorter girl saluted, walking off to the locker room.

Sooyoung turned back to the court. Dribbling a bit and getting lost in her own world. From the corner of her eye, she spotted the blonde hair walking on the sidelines towards the exit. 

“Hey Blondie!” Sooyoung called out, getting her attention and her friends attention as well. “This one’s for you.” She turned back around, shooting the ball from half court where she was and watching as it went into the basket. She turned to Jungeun, picking up her towel and throwing it over her shoulder with a wink. Jungeun didn’t even know what to say. Did this girl have no shame? Flirting with her in front of everyone. 

“Prey.” Bora said again, instantly hearing a scoff coming from the shorter girl.

* * *

“Don’t worry, she’s always like that.” Exy assured. 

“Classic Sooyoung. Can’t keep it in her pants around pretty girls.” Eunseo laughed. “I’m on a team with her. I know all about it.” 

“I mean she was just so… shameless.” 

“She has nothing to be ashamed of.” Exy replied. “Rich girl. Expensive cars, expensive jewelry and clothes. Captain of one of the best basketball teams in the country. Expensive home, and rich parents. Not to mention she’s fucking good looking.” 

Jungeun soaked in that information. She shook her head at the revelations. A girl with everything, was eyeing Jungeun any chance she got. Her brain couldn’t process something so silly. She was clearly being toyed with. Did she look easy? 

“But she’s sweet.” Eunseo defended. “When you get to know her.” 

“I couldn’t tell.” Jungeun scoffed, closing her book. “I really have to get home. My parents are expecting me.” She stood up from the table. Grabbing her book and throwing her bag over her shoulder.

They watched as Jungeun walked off without another word. 

“She’s a bit uptight huh?” 

“First day. Let her be.” Exy defended her quickly. “She’ll loosen up soon..” 

“Hopefully. Can’t have another buzzkill around. We already have Bora.” Eunseo said, laughing when Bora hit her on the arm.

Jungeun walked off to her car, she ignored the sounds of a group of people also walking through the parking lot. She just needed to get to her car, so she could get home. 

“Hey!” She heard someone call out, and when she turned around, seeing who it was, she walked even faster. “Hey wait up.” Sooyoung said, chasing after her like a boy in a teen romance movie. Sooyoung smiled as she leaned against Jungeun’s car.

“Hands off please. I just got this washed.” 

“Sorry.” Sooyoung smiled. “Where are you headed?”

“Home.” Jungeun answered shortly.

“Ah— you’re not a stay on campus type of gal are you?” 

“Are you?”

Sooyoung’s eyebrows furrowed. “Well.. no, but that wasn’t the question.” She smiled. “Why so serious?” 

“I have places to be. Soyong.” 

“Sooyoung….” The taller girl corrected. “And I can tell. You seem in a hurry.” 

Jungeun looked at her with a face that basically confirmed that was obvious. “Med student?” She asked and Jungeun stopped what she was doing, shutting her back door. 

“Yeah.”

“I can tell. Only med students are this uptight.” She pointed out.

Jungeun tried to not take offense. But it was really hard not to, especially with that smirk on Sooyoung’s face when she spoke to her. “Goodbye Sooyoung.” She said, and the girl stopped her from opening the door. Getting closer to the blonde than the shorter woman expected. She felt her breath hitch in her throat with Sooyoung that close. 

“Come to my basketball game.” 

“No.” Jungeun stated simply, despite how hard it was to avoid those eyes that looked down at her. 

“Why not?” 

“Because I have other things to attend to.” 

“Like what? Schoolwork?” Sooyoung questioned, obviously annoying Jungeun in the process. But she didn’t reply. “Come, it’ll be fun.” She tempted even more, running her thumb across her bottom lip as she stared into Jungeun’s eyes. Jungeun looked away from the sight, opening her car door.

“No. But good luck at your game Sooyoung.” She said, shutting the door and starting her car. 

The taller girl just smiled, backing away as Jungeun drove out of her parking spot. She watched in her rearview mirror as Sooyoung just stood in the parking lot, her friends slowly walking over to her after they noticed Jungeun was gone. 

“How’d that go?” Dahyun questioned.

“She’s a hard one.” 

“Never been too hard for you.” She encouraged. “Did you try the come to my game trick?”

“Yeah. She flat out said no… that’s never happened to me before… I kind of like it.” She smiled, and Dahyun shook her head.

“You are the most unbearable person I’ve ever met.” 

“I could say the same about you.”

* * *

“So.. do you like the new school?” Her father questioned, stuffing his mouth with food from his plate. Jungeun cleared her throat and looked up. She hadn’t been paying much attention to her family as they spoke about things she didn’t give a shit about. 

“It’s um.. yeah. I feel like I’ll adjust pretty quickly.” 

“Good. We don’t have any more money to switch you again.” He explained. “At least for now.” 

Jungeun sighed to herself. 

“Yerim, did you finish your homework?” Her mother asked, and the girl across from her lifted her head.

“Yes. Jungeun helped me.” 

“Huh? Big sister being a big sister for once. I’m in shock.” Her mother laughed, and Jungeun stood up from the table.

“I have to go and do my own homework actually.” 

“Jungeun— you know what we say about family dinner. You don’t leave until you finish your food and we’ve finished ours.” 

Younghoon looked between the two. One of her older brothers. They were quite close. All of them were, but he was closer in age to her so they experienced the same things at times. 

But overall, Jungeun hated that rule. And truthfully, she hated this house. But she couldn’t fight them. She’d never win. So she sat back down with her plate and continued to eat her food. Their oldest brother eventually walked through the door, a smile on his face. “I thought you said you’d wait for me.” He dramatically said with a smile on his face. Yerim ran to him quickly, hugging him tightly as he held her back. “Hey you.” He smiled, kissing her forehead. He shook Younghoon’s hand firmly, ruffling his hair as well with a bright smile. 

“We waited as long as we could.” Jungeun watched as her mother stood up to hug her brother and once she did, he turned to Jungeun. His smile grew even brighter. 

“Bring it in.” He smiled, stretching his arms out to her as she slowly got up to hug him. Despite how much she denied it, or tried to, she loved her older brother the most. Yerim too of course, but her brother just understood more. Jihoon, her brother, moved out 5 years ago and she didn’t think it could get any worse living there. But without him, it did. 

While her parents were too focused on him, he eventually ate off her plate. She turned to him and he gave her a wink, which resulted in her smiling. “So how are things with your fiancé?” Their father questioned. 

Jihoon looked up with a smile. “It’s great. We’re um, we’re getting married in about 4 months. But you knew that already. And we plan to move to a new place by next month.” He smiled. 

“Not liking the house you’re in huh?” 

“Well I uh… I actually have some news to share, which is why I decided to come over for dinner.” He smiled, wiping his mouth with a napkin. “She’s pregnant.. we found out, about a week ago.” 

“Jihoon— t-that’s amazing.” Jungeun laughed with a bright smile on her face. 

“Will you have a basketball court like you said you’d have one day?” Younghoon questioned, eating from his plate. 

“I can always get one built. The property has tons of land. But yeah a bigger house was needed.. also, I’m tired of living in the city..” He explained. “I’ve been here my whole life, so. A change of scenery would be amazing.” 

His parents nodded in agreement. “Well, just don’t forget about us.” 

“How could I?” He questioned. But he was looking at his younger sisters and not his parents. Smiling at the both of them. 

_**//** _

After dinner, Yerim helped her mother clean the dishes while Jungeun went up to her room to study. She sat at her desk and opened her books, the pencil in her hand clicking against her palm. She barely even noticed her room door opened. 

“Still as hardworking as ever huh?” She heard Jihoon question, and she turned around to him with a slight smile. He looked around the room, looking at all of the posters she had up and the few pictures of her friends on the wall. “That Jiwoo huh? Still as bright as ever.” He mentioned, picking up a picture frame and placing it down. 

“Yeah. I talked to her yesterday actually. She’ll probably call me again at some point tomorrow. She had an exam today so..” 

“Understandable.” He said, sitting on her bed. “So, how’s med school coming along?” 

Jungeun sighed and turned around to him. He laughed at her expression. “Tiring. I had to transfer recently to get to a more advanced class that my school didn’t offer.. so.” 

“How is it? The new school I mean.” 

She laughed. “Well I got hit on by someone the very first day.” 

“My sister’s got game huh?” 

“I wasn’t even doing anything!” They both laughed. “But yeah. Other than that. The school is really nice. I’ve met some nice people.” 

“Besides the person that flirted with you.” He teased, and she got red instantly.

“Stop… she’s—“

“Ahhh…” He whispered. “So it’s a girl.” 

She turned away from him when she spotted his growing smile. “Yes. She’s a girl. But I have no interest.” 

“Is she good looking at least?” 

Jungeun pondered on it for a moment. Not because she didn’t know the answer. But because she didn’t want to be too obvious. Because truthfully, Sooyoung _was_ attractive. Drop dead gorgeous in fact. A smile that could cure anything. A voice that made you feel safe and yet kept Jungeun on edge from the way she looked at her when she spoke. “Yeah. She is.” 

“Come on. That’s all?” He questioned.

“She’s a basketball player.” 

“So a basketball player is all over you. And you’re avoiding it?”

“Jihoon. I’m not here for relationships. Medical school is already tough on me. A relationship, especially one with someone like her, it wouldn’t be good for me.” 

“How would you know?” 

“Because I know. It’s not happening.” 

The door opened and they both turned to see their younger brother looking back at them. “Mom wants to talk to you.” He said, looking over at Jihoon. Her older brother turned back to her and exhaled.

“Well. I’ll talk to you soon, little one.” He said, standing up and hugging her tightly. “Stay out of trouble. Both of you.” He pointed at them, hugging Younghoon as well. They both watched as Jihoon left the room, stepping out of his way as her younger brother’s hand still stayed on her doorknob. He turned back to his sister. 

“So this girl—“

“Get out.” She immediately said, watching as he quickly left the room and shut the door.

_**THAT WEEKEND** _

“Are you really going to stay at home studying and doing work?” Exy questioned over the phone. 

Jungeun sighed, leaning back in her chair. She shook her head. “It’s a lot of work.” She replied. “Besides. It’s a basketball game. What’s the big deal?” She questioned. 

“It’s a chance to get away from all of that work you have. Come on Jungeun. I get you’re dedicated, but have some fun too. You’ll end up killing yourself one of these days doing all of this work at once.” 

Jungeun sighed deeply. She didn’t feel like she needed to explain herself. Despite medical school overbearing her, it was what she wanted to do. She wanted to be a doctor. She wanted to help people some day. It was all she wanted, and she worked years to get there. It didn’t help that her parents were all over her about it. 

“I’ll see.” Jungeun replied, hanging up the phone in the process. It was obvious she was being set up by her friends. Wanting her to come just so she could get bothered by Sooyoung a bit more. A part of her didn’t want to see Sooyoung, because despite how hard she tried, it was hard to ignore Sooyoung. 

How could you ignore such a pretty face? 

_**//** _

“It’s game day!” Sooyoung shouted in the locker room, her teammates shouting loudly to hype each other up. She posed for a picture with her burgundy and black jersey. Her name on the back of her jersey. That fire in her eyes when it came to playing the sport she loved so much. That confidence that exuded from her, easily spreading to those around her. “We got this. On the count of 3!” 

“1”

“2”

“3” 

“Swans!” They all shouted, high fiving each other after the huddling they did. She smiled as her teammates surrounded her, walking from the locker room onto their home court. 

The sound of the cheers in the gymnasium was a drug for Sooyoung. She was engulfed in it, smiling and seeing a few familiar faces in the crowd as she walked to the sideline with her teammates. They waited for the referees to move to the court and they made their way to it as well. Getting in their designated positions and watching the ball as it was tossed up in the air. Sooyoung’s team got it first, and the crowd went crazy as they watched their home team moving up and down the court. 

_**//** _

“So you made it after all?” Bora questioned with a smile, as she waited for Jungeun in the parking lot. The girl walked towards her, sporting a blouse like crop top and some jeans. Her hair was prettily cascading over her shoulder.

“I finished my homework in time.” Jungeun smiled. 

“Good. They’re at halftime anyway right now. You made it on time in some way.” Bora linked her arms with Junguen, leading her to the gymnasium.

Junguen was genuinely shocked by the loud crowd. The school was extremely supportive of their home team. Rocking team shirts and wearing paint on their faces. Signs up as well as they cheered loudly and shouted chants together. “We have pretty good spots.” Bora informed, holding Jungeun’s hand and pulling her through the bleachers. “These are my friends.” She smiled, Jungeun following closely behind her as she looked at the girls sitting on one row together. 

“Hi…” Jungeun said shyly and the girls smiled at her. 

“That’s Jennie, Rosé, and Jisoo.” Bora introduced. “Lisa is down there on the court, so.” 

“Jungeun.” The blonde introduced herself and the girls smiled kindly at her, moving aside so she could sit with them. They waited for halftime to be over, watching as the crowd went crazy over the girls team returning from the locker room. Jungeun’s eyes scanned the team as they excitedly ran back towards the court. And as if fate was working against her, her eyes landed directly on Sooyoung. Her hair tied back exactly like the first time she officially met her. The way that jersey looked on her….

Sooyoung’s eyes met hers, and the most satisfying smirk appeared on her face. She winked at Jungeun before turning away, focusing on her team for a moment. 

The cheerleaders walked onto the court doing their routine and inciting cheers from the crowd. Jungeun recognized one of them. She’d seen her a few times on campus. She was quite stunning, and somehow even more stunning in the cheer uniform she wore. When her eyes weren’t trained on Sooyoung, they were following the dark haired girl with the bright smile. She was quite pale and definitely taller than Jungeun.

But before Jungeun could even blink, the team were back on the court moving gracefully down the court. But no one, not a single soul, stuck out the way Sooyoung did. The way she dribbled the ball put everyone in a trance. She easily would put the ball between her legs, tricking her opponent and shooting a simple shot in their face. The cockiest smile presented as she ran down the opposite side. 

It was the 4th quarter now, and The Swans were up by 15, but for some odd reason, the opposing team were catching up. Probably because the home team had gotten too confident. Jungeun was intrigued for the first time. She never was really into sports, so she wasn’t one to watch them. She didn’t really even understand what was going on, but Bora explained to her throughout the game. There were 2 minutes left in the game, and Sooyoung’s team was only up by 10 points now. 

Jungeun was nervous, but for some reason she felt her excitement and anxiety mixing in with the crowd around her. All of them hoping for the same outcome. A win, and a smile on the crowd's face. 

The team moved from their huddle and back to the court. The opposing team passed the ball and moved down the court. And before they could even make a point, her eyes widened at the sight of Sooyoung snatching the ball and running down the court. The speed she possessed made Jungeun’s jaw drop. She jumped up, dunking confidently and landing with fever. She shouted loudly and the crowd jumped up, pumping up her ego more than it already was.

“Let’s go!!” Sooyoung yelled on the court, her eyes still focused on the opposing team holding the ball as they made their next move. 

Time moved quickly, and before Jungeun even noticed, there was only 30 seconds left on the clock of the 4th quarter. It was The Swan’s possession, and they passed the ball with fluidity up the court. 

Her eyes were trained on Sooyoung. The way she moved, the way she handled the ball in her hands, how good her skin looked under these bright lights. She shook her head, there was 10 seconds left. 

Sooyoung passed the ball again.

5 seconds.

The ball was passed back to her. She moved forward, doing an abrupt stop and making her opponent trip over their own feet. Throwing her perfect arms up and shooting the shot, her head turning in the direction of Jungeun. Her arm still outstretched in the position she shot. And when the buzzer went off, her smile grew as her eyes didn’t leave Jungeun. Her teammates jumped all over her, and the crowd went crazy. Everyone around her jumped to their feet. Acting like wild animals or clapping for the win their home team brought.

60 to 35 was the ending score. 

The energy that Jungeun possessed after that win. She couldn’t stop herself from smiling and clapping. The gymnasium didn’t empty at all. Everyone stood around, celebrating the win, hugging each other and chatting as long as they could. The girls Jungeun sat with removed themselves from their spots and walked down to the court. Talking to the team. She assumed they knew each other. It wouldn’t be much of a surprise. A bunch of pretty girls friends with other pretty girls who were also popular. She followed behind them shyly. Minding her own business and waiting for Bora to finish her conversation with another girl who she heard went by the name of Yoojung.

“So you came anyway?” Sooyoung teased, walking up to Jungeun from her peripheral view. She was sweating slightly, using a towel to dab at the droplets that rolled down her cheek. 

“I came for my friends.” Jungeun lied.

“Don’t be like that.” Sooyoung smiled, standing in front of her.

Jungeun would be a fool to ignore just how good looking Sooyoung was. That smile. Those muscles and those stupid brown captivating eyes. She was sweating a bit, a thin layer coating her body. Jungeun tried to avoid the sight of it. How her skin shimmered from the light in the gym, bouncing off of her tanned moist skin. “My friends and I— we usually go and get food after wins. You should come..” She suggested and Jungeun laughed.

“Is it your life's mission to hit on me?” 

“What makes you think I’m hitting on you? I’m just asking a simple question. As a friend.” Sooyoung pushed. Eyeing Jungeun. 

One of the things Sooyoung liked about the blonde, is how small she was. She had to look up to speak to Sooyoung, and there was nothing better than looking down and seeing those brown eyes looking into hers. Jungeun was beautiful. Her brown eyes were captivating, and her lips were tempting the longer Sooyoung stood there. Those pink lips and that perfect figure. Sooyoung’s eyes trailed off more than they should have, her eyes following the collarbones of Jungeun. 

“You’re eyeing me the same way boys do.” Jungeun insulted and that made Sooyoung smile even more. 

“Really? I’m just looking at a beautiful girl that I _really_ want to come and join me and my friends for a post game dinner.” Sooyoung smiled, tucking the blonde hair behind the shorter girl's ear. “But— I won’t force you. I just think you’re really pretty Jungeun.” 

“You remembered my name.” Jungeun rolled her eyes, laughing sarcastically.

“How could I forget someone as beautiful as you?” 

“You’re good with your words. How many girls has that gotten you?” Jungeun questioned with her arms crossed.

“It’s a simple dinner.” Sooyoung chuckled, her eyes wide, full of disbelief. “And barely a dinner.” 

“I have homework.”

“Everyone does. We still find time for others.”

“I’m a med student.” 

“Everyone knows that. You make it your mission to let _everyone_ know that.” 

“So you’ll know that I’m a busy woman.” Jungeun argued.

“So am I. You think because I'm good at basketball and because I have a pretty face that I’m not busy too?” The taller woman laughed. “Come to dinner.”

“And if I don’t?” 

“Then you don’t. I’m not forcing you. Just strongly urging you.” Sooyoung smiled. 

“If you want me to eat dinner with you. Then just say so. I don’t have time for the cliche bullshit.” Jungeun sighed deeply.

They were briefly interrupted by the woman Jungeun had been eyeing on the cheerleading team. “Come on. They’re waiting for you in the locker room.” Jinsoul said excitedly, placing her hand gently on Sooyoung’s shoulder. Jungeun looked at the hand there and Sooyoung smiled at her friend. 

“I’ll be there in a second.” Sooyoung assured, watching the girl walk off. Sooyoung smiled widely, placing her pointer finger beneath Jungeun’s chin, tilting her just enough to make eye contact with the red haired woman. “Come have dinner with me. You won’t regret it.” She winked, moving off to join her teammates that came to grab her attention.

But her eyes never really left Jungeun. She watched as the blonde stood their shell shocked. That shit eating grin on her face, just knowing she was getting under Jungeun’s skin. 

_**//** _

“Jungeun where are you going?!” Exy called out as she watched the blonde moving to her car. The shorter girl stopped in her tracks, turning around to her friend. Watching as she left her group of friends and jogged over to her. “You’re not gonna stay and hang out?” 

“I uh— I have to—“

And Exy was surprised to see Sooyoung looking over at them both, a smirk on her face as she listened to Jungeun’s excuse for leaving. “You’re going out with the basketball team..” She pointed out and Jungeun’s mouth fell open. “I’m coming too.” Exy said, waving over her friends. “All of us.” 

“Okay…” 

_**//** _

Despite being closed off, Jungeun seemed to make friends quite easily. It was like they were drawn to her on their own. She never spoke first. Her friendships always started with someone speaking to her. That was also how most of her relationships went. The thing with guys is, they didn’t exactly take much to please. She also found that she never really enjoyed being with men, so she eventually just stopped dating them and focusing on school. Plus, she was tired of her family always wanting to meet them.

None of the relationships lasted more than 2 months before she got bored or irritated by their existence. And the longer that went on, she honestly couldn’t understand the boy craze people went through. It was boring and boys were unnecessarily rough. When she got into college, she found that she was more interested in…. girls. It wasn’t until she was invited to a party where they initiated freshmen in. Making them down a shot of vodka with a goldfish in it or drinking a shot of tequila mixed with whiskey and vodka. She obviously leaned toward the latter. 

It was the first time she ever drank something that wasn’t beer. Someone had caught her eye, a cute girl who seemed bright and excited to be there. Her energy was much different from the drunk college kids around her. It was almost like a fairytale the way they locked eyes, and before she knew it the girl was walking over to her to introduce herself.

“Jiwoo!” She said brightly. “I assume you’re… new?” She questioned and Jungeun smiled and nodded.

“Jungeun… by the way.” She said as Jiwoo smiled even brighter.

“Nice to meet you Jungeun. Would you like to dance?” And Jungeun didn’t see why she would turn down such an offer. She quickly jumped up and allowed the girl to guide her through the sweaty people and danced with her. It was one of the best nights she’d ever had since attending college. They became friends, very close friends. They did everything together, and Jiwoo insisted on helping Jungeun with whatever projects or homework she had. When Jungeun was holed up in her dorm, Jiwoo would come over with food and warm hugs. After some time, the small infatuation she had with the girl had slowly decreased into admiration. 

Jiwoo was bright and kind despite how harsh the world was. She was energetic and friendlier than anyone she’d ever met and if she had to, she’d honestly take the clothes off her back and the shoes off her feet if someone needed it. “Are you really going out of the country?”

“Awww… you’re gonna miss me?” Jiwoo teased, pinching Jungeun’s cheeks as she did her signature eye roll. 

“No. I just want to know how long I’ll be able to have some peace and quiet around me.” Jungeun jokingly said, feeling the lightest shove from Jiwoo as they both laughed. 

“I am going out of the country. My grandma’s really sick so we’re going to visit her and spend some time with her.” 

Jungeun’s face dropped instantly. “Oh my… I’m sorry to hear that Jiwoo.” 

“It’s fine. She’ll be fine. I haven’t seen her in months. She makes the best brownies!” Jiwoo shouted excitedly.

“Hopefully better than the ones you make.” Jungeun teased once again, earning a hit that was a bit harder this time around.

It was the first time Jungeun really felt a romantic feeling for someone that wasn’t a man. It was strange, and she felt like maybe she was just desperate to feel something at some point. She struggled a lot with her sexuality, especially because she’d never really experienced anything romantically with a woman. So it was more of something she just felt. She hadn’t really experimented, and she’d never even kissed another woman. Let alone touched the skin of one romantically. 

And to be fair, despite what she felt for Jiwoo, it didn’t compare to what she was feeling right now. She felt nervous and small, but in the most enticing way possible. She couldn’t tell what it was about Sooyoung that intrigued her, despite how she constantly rejected her advances. To be quite fair, it was the first woman that ever showed any interest in her, or maybe it was just the first one that was so bold about it. 

She was sitting at a cheesecake restaurant with the basketball team and her friends. They nearly took up most of the seating inside of there, in one corner being loud together. The entire time, Sooyoung was being a comedian, making jokes and having the entire table laughing. Her eyes caught Jungeun’s every so often and smiled at her with that charming look on her face. 

“No seriously! The second I shot that three, the whole opposing team looked at me in disbelief. It was amazing.” Sooyoung laughed. 

“Yeah. That means we need you to do the same thing when semi-finals come up in a few months.” Eunseo pointed out. 

“You say that like it’s a hard thing to do.” Sooyoung said cockily.

“I’m just saying some people crack under that pressure.” 

“I never have before now, so—“ Sooyoung laughed, smiling when the waiter brought them. “Besides, we won them last year… won the finals by not a lot but hey, a win is a win.” 

“That was before you were the official captain. It’s different now.. we trust you though!” Lisa added, and they all looked at her. Making her cower in her seat.

“Just trust me alright. I haven’t disappointed you now, I won’t disappoint you then.” Sooyoung assured. “Now shut up, eat and celebrate this win tonight alright?!” 

Jungeun just watched her from across the table, watching the way she turned to her with the softest look in her eyes. She couldn’t tell what it was, but she could tell the way her teammates spoke made her feel smaller than she actually was. But she bounced back easily, moving onto another topic as they all ate together. They ended the dinner with some freshly made cheesecake and Jungeun smiled the entire time. Joining in on the few random topics everyone spoke about. She was finally starting to loosen up a little more although the night was almost over. But at least she was trying. Her phone began to ring though, and she stepped off to answer it.

Her face instantly dropped when she saw it was her mother calling. A deep sigh leaving her lips. 

“Hello?” 

“Where the hell are you? Dinner started and you still haven’t been home yet!” She yelled through the phone. “Get home right now.” 

“I was at a basketball game with some friends.” Jungeun explained. “I-I’ll—“

“NOW.” Her mother said angrily, hanging up the phone. 

Jungeun sighed, looking back at the table and seeing the others still eating the cake. She walked over, grabbing her jacket as Exy turned to her. “I gotta go. But I had a lot of fun guys.” 

“Wait you’re leaving? We haven’t even tried the strawberry shortcake yet!” Lisa pointed out. 

“I just— I’ll see you all around.” 

Sooyoung watched her throw on her leather jacket, running her hand through her hair and tossing it over her shoulder. “I’ll text you when I get home.” She said to Exy, before turning to the others with a tight smile. Sooyoung watched her walk out the door before she quickly got up, jumping over friends and following the girl outside. Jungeun hadn’t even noticed, until she heard her name being called by that familiar voice that hadn’t left her mind since their first conversation. 

“You didn’t say bye to me.” Sooyoung pointed out, walking beside her as Jungeun avoided her eyes.

“I said bye collectively to everyone.” 

“You didn’t even look at me.” 

“I didn’t know I had to make eye contact with you to leave a restaurant and say bye.” 

“Listen—“

Jungeun stopped in her tracks and turned to Sooyoung with a serious look on her face. “Look Sooyoung, what do you want here?” She snapped slightly, although her anger wasn’t directed to her. She almost regretted it when she saw the look on Sooyoung’s face for a brief moment. But it disappeared just as quickly as it appeared.

Sooyoung chuckled, standing still as well with her hands in her pockets. Her hair was beautiful and she had a lock that rested on the right side of her forehead. Her eyes were brown and she looked amazing in those jeans and that red top. “I want to take you out.” 

“No.” 

“You’re not even giving me a chance.” Sooyoung smiled even harder. “Look, I’m all for being hard to get, but you’re being unreasonable here.” 

“You don’t even know me.” 

“So let me get to know you.” Sooyoung smiled cutely, her eyes growing bigger the longer she looked at Jungeun. She couldn’t believe how good Jungeun looked. The way that leather jacket fit perfectly on her. The way her neck was exposed for a brief second as her hair rested on her right shoulder. The way her eyes peaked up slowly to look at Sooyoung eye to eye. 

“You just don’t give up do you?” 

“Why should I?” Sooyoung questioned and Jungeun went quiet before sighing. She could see the smile that grew on the red haired girl’s face. 

“Okay fine. But it can’t be this week. I’m busy with school.” She said. And Sooyoung had to hide the excitement that went through her body. She just smiled at her, that was all she could do in that moment. 

“So how about saturday?” 

“This saturday?” 

“Yeah.” Sooyoung responded. “Unless you have another girl scheduled on that day.” 

Jungeun laughed, and although Sooyoung heard her laugh all night, it was different, because she was laughing directly at something Sooyoung said. It was infectious and it was cute the way Jungeun covered her mouth immediately when she did. Fixing her hair as she tucked it cutely behind her ear displaying the assortment of piercings. It was attractive, she didn’t think Jungeun could get more attractive. And yet she did. Every passing second that she stood there and looked at her. It was hard to look away. Her heart jumped when Jungeun looked her in the eyes again, but she instantly stood up straight, her eyes leaving her exposed neck and looking into the innocent brown eyes of the blonde. 

“Fine. Saturday it is.” 

“8pm. I’ll pick you up from your house.” 

“You don’t even know where I live.” Jungeun teased and Sooyoung smiled.

“Come to my practice on Monday. It’s at 3. We’ll exchange phone numbers and addresses then.” Sooyoung smirked. “Goodnight Jungeun. Get home safely.” She caressed her cheek with the most arrogant smile ever, knowing she finally cracked through the tiniest layer of Jungeun. It wasn’t much, but it was a start. Jungeun just stood there and watched as Sooyoung walked back into the restaurant. She shook her head and laughed, knowing that Sooyoung was sooo going to tell her team about it.

_**//** _

When Jungeun got home, she prepared herself for the wrath her mother was going to show her. She couldn’t count the amount of times she sighed whenever she was around her parents. She got out of the car, grabbing her books and locking her car doors. She dreaded walking up to that front door and going inside. She knew what she would run into the moment she made it aware she was home. It's not like she could get by her parents if they were awake at this time. The moment she stepped in, she looked into the living room and saw her dad sitting in his chair with a newspaper in his hand.

“She’s in the kitchen.” He dryly said, and she placed her bag down at the front door. 

She slowly walked down the hall to the kitchen, watching as her mother washed the dishes. The woman didn’t even turn around but she knew her daughter was standing there. “Where were you?”

“I told you already. I was at a basketball game.” 

And the woman slammed a plate down into the sink. Walking over to the girl with fire in her eyes. “A basketball game? You were supposed to be home tonight at a specific time to join us for dinner!” 

“It was one dinner!” She yelled back, instantly earning a slap across the face. She placed her hand on the part of her face that turned instantly red and stung like hell. She looked at her mother like a deer in headlights. 

“The next time you raise your voice at me— it’ll be worse than a slap across the face.” She said angrily, turning away from the blonde. “Get out of my face.” 

Jungeun quickly left the kitchen and ran up to her room. Her tears fell down her cheeks and just the touch of the tear against the stinging area caused her slight pain. She lay in her bed and let her tears fall as she thought about how angry she was and how much she hated living there. She always thought about how she wished to move in with her brother, but she knew that wasn’t possible. Her parents wouldn’t allow it. They didn’t even entertain the idea of it whenever she would bring it up a while back. 

This wasn’t the first time her mother hit her, but it didn’t get any easier. And she never fully stomached it either. It was painful and hurtful and she resented them more than she should have. She was angry, and there was no outlet for her feelings other than to cry or bury her head into her work and school. The only good thing her parents ever offered or gave her was paying for her to go to college. She made friends, and she loved what she did, but it almost never mattered because she was always coming back home to this shithole. She was grown and yet her parents still treated her like a child and there wasn’t much she could do because truthfully she was afraid to do pretty much anything. She was always on a strict schedule because going outside of it resulted in what happened tonight.

Her mother was overbearing, bossy, abusive and arrogant while her father was just there. He just existed and never stood up for her. He never did anything. It was painful and angered her more than anything. 

Her door opened slowly but she didn’t look to see who it was. She just lay there as her tears slowly dried up. 

She heard a tiny voice from the doorway. “..Are you okay?” Yerim asked, stepping inside of the room a little further.

“I’m fine.” Jungeun bluntly replied.

“I just- I heard what happened and I wanted to hel—“

“Yerim I said I’m fine so just leave me alone.” She sat up angrily, eyeing the girl at the door.

Yerim took in the redness of her older sister’s face and frowned. But she knew better than anyone that you shouldn’t bother Jungeun while she was angry or upset. She was always a ticking bomb and at times she would just explode from how much shit she held in. “Okay… sorry. Goodnight.” Yerim quietly said, shutting the door and leaving Jungeun with her own thoughts.

* * *

Jungeun entered her human anatomy class that morning. And the horrid smell hit her the moment she stepped in. On the table in the back, she spotted a dead body laying on a table with the chest cut open. This class was “ _hands on_ ” after all, but she wasn’t exactly expecting to be working with dead bodies, if not now, anytime soon. Each countertop in the lab had a body part laying atop it. Jungeun would be taking this class every week on Mondays, Wednesday’s and Friday’s. The last few times she was in this class, it was just an orientation and it was practically just a good hour of lecturing. 

Her favorite part about this class, was that she was actually allowed to wear a lab coat over her clothing. It made her feel like a professional of some sort.

Her professor walked into the class not long after the students did. She found a spot at one of the tables and the room quickly filled. Thankfully, the table she sat at had people who seemed to be very outgoing and funny. The smell of the room nearly made her puke and seeing a detached limb in front of her wasn’t the most pleasant sight ever. She took notes the entire time and listened to her professor carefully.

They weren’t quite examining the body parts just yet but instead they were just learning a few basic parts of anatomy when it came to the human body. Her previous college definitely didn’t offer these kinds of teachings there. Which was a class she badly needed to proceed with her medical studying. After the class ended, she stayed back a little longer than the other students. Some walked around, also peaking at the bodies that sat in the back of the lab. 

She looked at the other body that wasn’t being completely crowded around by eager eyes. She felt herself cringe at the sight of some random dead guy being put on display for a bunch of college students. It also wasn’t the most pleasant sight seeing a body completely mutilated for science. She twisted her pen in her hand as she looked at the insides, ignoring her urge to vomit in that moment. And before she could even stop it from happening, her pen fell into the open cavity of that poor man’s stomach. “Shit.” She muttered underneath her breath. She nearly freaked out but she kept it together so she didn’t draw any unwanted attention.

Her favorite pen had fallen into some poor man’s insides, and she wasn’t even wearing any gloves. She couldn’t just reach in there, and she remembered being told by her professor that the newer class other than the upperclassman were not allowed to touch the bodies. She looked around, making sure no one was looking before she looked back at her pen just sitting there staring back at her. She sighed defeatedly. But no one was around to see her. She took in a deep breath, wiping her sweaty palms onto her jeans and exhaled. She lowered her hand into the body, trying to grab the pen that rested within it, but she immediately pulled her hand out. She felt something wet and squishy brushing against her exposed knuckles.

“What are you doing?” She heard a girl question, and she immediately turned in her direction, putting her hand behind her back. She was frozen, not just because she had been possibly caught doing the most disgustingly morbid thing, but because the woman was beautiful. She was much taller than Jungeun too, her brown hair up in a neat bun. 

“Um…” She awkwardly replied, looking at the body and then back at the girl. “Um. Nothing.” The taller girl smiled at the blonde, walking closer and looking into the body and noticing the pen there. She laughed, using her glove fitted hand and reaching in to grab the pen. She handed it to Jungeun, who hesitantly grabbed it. 

“You should be more careful. Besides, I don’t think this dead guy has much use for that pen.” She joked, before removing the glove and reaching her hand out. “Doyeon.” She smiled brightly, gently shaking Jungeun’s hand.

“Jungeun.” The blonde replied.

“New girl.” Doyeon smiled. “You’re pretty popular around here. What’s your major?” 

“I’m a 2nd year med student.” 

“Interesting. I’m in my 3rd year.” She smiled at her. “Started out wanting to be a mortician, ended up here. I kind of like people who are alive.” 

“Yeah..” Jungeun said, not really sure what else to say in that moment. 

“Well anyways, I gotta get going to my next class so—“ She said chipperly. “But it was nice meeting you Jungeun.” They made eye contact briefly before the girl turned around and walked over to one of her friends. Jungeun immediately disinfected the pen, before putting it into her coat pocket. Doyeon watched as she left the classroom with a smile.

The moment she stepped out she heard a voice that was far too familiar. “Jungeun?” The girl called out the moment she noticed her. She waved off her friends, letting them know they could go on ahead without her. Jungeun began to walk but Sooyoung stood in front of her, not allowing her to go much further. 

“Sooyoung.” Jungeun said, looking up at her. “How are you everywhere that I go? Like, quite literally.” 

“You do know this is the science wing right?” 

“What does that have to do with anything?” 

“I’m a biology major Jungeun. I’m always here.” She laughed, watching as Jungeun rolled her eyes. “You’re attractive don’t get me wrong. But trust me, I don’t make it my mission to come and find you on this overwhelmingly large campus.” 

“I find that hard to believe.” Jungeun said, fixing her hair. 

Sooyoung smiled as she looked down at Jungeun. Her silky blonde hair and her pouty lips as she leaned her back against the wall. Jungeun looked up at the woman as she held her books close to her chest. “The white lab coat— can’t lie, makes you look a little sexy.” The taller woman smirked.

“Unbelievable.” Jungeun said, gently pushing her away, and in that moment Sooyoung felt her heart drop. Jungeun also turned to where she was looking, and she cleared her throat quickly before removing herself from the wall. It was Doyeon, and for a moment she was just staring at the two, but then she walked off with her friends, leaving Sooyoung frozen for a moment. 

“I’ll catch you later okay?” Sooyoung said to the girl, quickly walking off and leaving Jungeun confused.

* * *

Jungeun sat outside on that Friday after leaving her physics class. She sat at a bench and ate a sandwich that she’d bought from a store that was close to the campus. Bora sat across from her as she did some work before her next class. It was pretty nice outside that day, so Jungeun removed the hoodie she was wearing, revealing the low v-neck shirt that exposed her collarbones.

“So she asked me on a date, big deal.” Jungeun said with her sandwich in her hand.

“ _Big deal?_ ” She looked up from her work, stopping her writing and all to eye Jungeun disapprovingly. “You’ve not even been here 4 weeks yet and you have the _most_ popular person on campus practically throwing herself at you. Not to mention the countless amount of girls that throw themselves at her.” 

“Look, I don’t even know what she’s like yet. Yeah she’s popular, but what if she’s an asshole?” Jungeun questioned.

“Then she’d be a hot asshole.” Bora replied seriously, hearing Jungeun sigh at her disapprovingly. She put her pen down and walked around the table to sit beside Jungeun. “Look— I’m just saying, she must really be into you for her to constantly pursue you so much.” 

“She probably just likes the chase.” 

“Who doesn’t?” Bora laughed, turning to Jungeun fully now. “You’re pretty, and smart, and you’re playing hard to get with someone that gets everything they want. Of course she likes the chase.” 

“Bora, I’ve never even been on a date with a girl. This will be my first time and of course it has to be some very attractive girl with an entire school riding her back.. she’s just…” 

“Different.” Bora finished the sentence for her. “She’s not what you’re used to and I get that. But why run away from something you haven’t even tried yet? I’ve barely known you for a month and even I can tell you’re better than this.” 

“Okay really?” 

“So what, you're a dorky, socially awkward and small person?” 

“ _Bora_.”

“Pushing it too far?”

“Yeah. A little.” 

“Speak of the devil.” Bora said, watching as Sooyoung walked over to them alone. Her hands in her jean pockets and a tight fitted white crop top. Jungeun felt her heart stop when she got closer. Her abs flexed and moved with each step. Even as she just stood there they sat perfectly on her abdomen. Her body was golden and her hair was flowing with the small gusts of wind. Jungeun’s eyes took some time to finally travel up the girl’s body and meet her eyes.

“Don’t look too hard, it makes me shy.” Sooyoung joked as she watched Jungeun instantly close her mouth.

 _How embarrassing_ , she thought as she heard Bora stifling a laugh beside her.

“I came to give you my number. You know, so I can talk to you about our date tomorrow.” 

“It’s not a date.” Jungeun corrected.

“Okay. So we can talk about our very nice outing together where we talk about our favorite colors and shit. I don’t know. Just take my number down already.” Sooyoung said impatiently, watching as Jungeun pulled out her phone so she could tell her it. She didn’t mind saying it aloud since Bora was also a friend of Sooyoung’s. “Text me. Preferably before 10pm.” 

“What happened to practice today?” Bora questioned.

“Coach had an emergency and the assistant one is too busy coaching the soccer team.” She explained, before turning her eyes back to Jungeun. She smiled at her as she took in how good she looked. She never got over how attractive she was. It was like she looked better and better each time she saw her. “Well, I have to get going now. Studying is a bitch.” Sooyoung explained.

“You’re telling me.” Bora whined. “Bye Sooyoung.” 

“Bye Bora.” She smiled, turning to the blonde with confidence as she blatantly checked her out. “Goodbye Jungeun.” 

“B-Bye.” She waved before the girl turned around. She watched another girl run to her, much shorter with brown hair and blonde highlights. They walked off together and Jungeun hadn’t stopped staring off into space since the red haired woman left.

Bora stood up and began to pack her things. “Nice stuttering. So much for that ‘date’ not being a big deal huh?” She teased, leaving Jungeun sitting alone dumbfounded.

* * *

“There’s just no way I’m going to study all of this before exams. Like seriously what the hell is a phrenic nerve?!” Heejin complained from Sooyoung’s bed. She watched as her friend shuffled through her closet, picking out an outfit to wear for her date with Jungeun. Heejin tossed her book aside and crossed her arms. “When are we going to be able to meet this girl by the way?” 

Sooyoung turned around and looked at her, flagging her shirt as she looked at the design on it, tossing it to the side. Wasn’t what she wanted to wear. “When I possibly get a second date.” 

“You’re confident huh?” 

“I have to be. She’s the only girl that’s ever given me this hard of a time.” Sooyoung admitted, checking herself out in her mirror.

“I like her already.” Heejin laughed, placing her hands behind her head. 

“I mean— how could you deny someone like me? Not once, but _twice_. I mean, I’m good looking, I’m smart, I’m the captain of one of the best basketball teams in the country. Oh, did I forget to mention, I’m fucking good looking!” She mentioned again. 

“Maybe she’s just not into you.” Heejin said bluntly, picking up her book again. “It’s possible you know, to get rejected a few times in your life…” 

“Not me. I’m practically a babe magnet.” 

“You’re insufferable is what you are.” 

“You love me.” Sooyoung smiled, tossing a pink thin sweater onto the bed. 

“I do. Except when you’re like this.” Heejin jokingly said. “So, what’s her name?”

“Jungeun.” The girl replied, putting a pair of jeans up to her waist to see how good they’d look on her. “Her name is Jungeun, she repeated. “Yeah she’s… cute. Well, pretty. But her personality is cute. She’s like— shy, really shy and she’s so calm.” 

“Maybe she’s just calm because she doesn’t know you.” 

“She’s going to eventually.” Sooyoung defended. “We’re going on a date tomorrow. I’m just waiting on her to call or text me—“

“Call or… you, Ha Sooyoung, is waiting for someone _else_ to text or call you. I’m a little concerned.” Heejin admitted, smiling brightly as she waited for Sooyoung’s response. The girl just laughed, it was true. Sooyoung was confident and usually she initiated dates and asked girls for their numbers. She was sure of what she wanted and she was sure of the effect she had on others, she knew when to smile and what to say, and how to look at a girl to make them weak in the knees. But Jungeun… was different. Maybe she wasn’t affected by what Sooyoung did, to try and break her down, make her fall victim to her. Or maybe she was just good at hiding it, maybe Sooyoung wasn’t looking for the signs hard enough. 

But it intrigued her, made her want to try harder. To say better things to slowly break down that brick wall between her and Jungeun. To get to know her and what she liked to eat, if she could cook, if she liked kids, hanging out with friends or family. She wanted to know _everything_ about her. “She’s different..” Sooyoung admitted, taking off the pants she just tried on. “She’s… reserved… and she doesn’t just… throw herself at me like other girls.” 

“So maybe she doesn’t like you.” Heejin added, and Sooyoung scoffed.

“Everyone likes me.” 

“Your shoulders aren’t strong enough to hold that big head of yours.” Heejin laughed. 

“Shut up. It’s just true.” 

“I get it. I do. You have the looks, the charisma, the million dollar smile and the money that you flash with the gold plated bracelets on your wrists. You have it all.” 

“I don’t have it all… not yet anyway.” 

_**//** _

Heejin lied at the end of the bed with her legs up, wiggling her toes as she looked up at the ceiling. “Have you found the perfect jeans yet?” Heejin questioned after Sooyoung took almost an hour picking her outfit. 

“I think so. These ones make my waist look good.” Sooyoung smiled. 

“I’ve never seen you hellbent on looking this good for a date. You never have anything to prove. You must really like her.” Heejin pointed out, placing her chin into her palms and watching her best friend walk around the room. 

“Something like that.” 

“Well— I’m glad you’re finally dating again. You know moving on from your e—“

“Don’t…” 

“I was just saying, I meant it in a good—“

“I know what you meant. But we agreed not to talk about her. It’s bad enough I have to see her on campus everyday.” She explained.

Heejin was reluctant to speak again but she couldn’t help but to at least apologize in case she overstepped. She fully sat up and spoke. “You’re right I’m sorry.” 

“It’s fine. You just want to help. I get it. But just, refrain from mentioning her.” 

“Got it. Sorry.” 

Sooyoung sighed to herself, grabbing her outfit and placing it on the chair in her room. The room was tense suddenly and when she got a text from an unknown number, she moved to leave the room. But not before stopping and turning to Heejin, who looked at her confused from the sudden stop in her movements. “We have two of them.” She said confidently. 

“What?” Heejin questioned with furrowed eyebrows. 

“Phrenic nerves. We have two of them. A left one. And we have the right one.” She explained. “They’re nerves used for breathing, they.. pass down the neck and they connect to your lungs and then to your heart. They’re a part of the twelve cranial nerves. Which each have a different function for our senses and our movements. Like our head and our neck and shit. So yeah, basically they’re important…” 

Heejin just looked at her with her jaw slacked. 

“That’s what the hell a phrenic nerve is.” The taller woman said before leaving the room. 

_**//**_  
She looked at the text that she got from the unknown number. Smiling when she read whose name it was.

_Hey it’s Jungeun, I was texting you.. about our plans tomorrow..?_

Sooyoung smiled to herself as she leaned against the hallway wall. She didn’t text back, but instead she called her. Jungeun left her living room when she saw the phone call coming through, walking up to her room and eyeing the call for a moment before picking up.

_”Hello?” Sooyoung said the moment the call was picked up. Jungeun’s heart leaped out of her chest at the sound of Sooyoung’s voice through the phone._

_“Uh yeah. Hi…” Jungeun replied._

_“So you finally came around. On the last day huh?”_

_“Anticipation.”_

_“I don’t need anticipation.” Sooyoung said confidently. “Look I was just calling to make sure I wasn’t getting catfished or some shit.”_

Jungeun laughed and Sooyoung felt her body get all warm and fuzzy at the sound of it. Not to mention how smooth her voice was. She also seemed to talk a lot faster than most people too, but Sooyoung didn’t mind. 

_”So about our date.” Sooyoung started. “I was thinking about coming to pick you up and taking you somewhere, there’s this place I always go to.”_

_”How do I know you’re not just taking me somewhere you can kill me and throw me into a river?”_

_“Do I look like someone who would do that?” Sooyoung smiled from her end._

_“Nah. Not really.” They both laughed. “Well um, yeah. I suppose you can come and pick me up but… could it be a bit early in the day?”_

_“Uh. Sure. I’ll pick a time.” Sooyoung replied. “Is there… is there anything you’re allergic to?”_

_Jungeun paused for a moment, raising an eyebrow as she thought about it. “Not that I know of..”_

_“Okay good. So tomorrow, maybe around 4ish? I kind of wanna relax while the sun is out.” She explained cutely, waiting anxiously for a response._

_“That’s a perfect time.” She replied, hearing her mom arriving home downstairs. “I um. I have to go, but I’ll text you my address.”_

_“Okay bye—“ Sooyoung said, before the call cut out._

She smiled to herself, already missing her voice. But luckily she’d be seeing her again tomorrow, and she’d hear her for a much longer time. And not only that, but she’d get to look at her even more. She picked out a nice outfit, changing the jeans out for some shorts instead. It was going to be a little warm tomorrow, she didn’t want to wear jeans with the sun baking her. 

For the first time since her ex, she felt anxious and nervous about going out with someone. She kept looking at her face, smiling and checking out her teeth and hair. She was obsessing over her image and it was unhealthy at times, but she couldn’t help it. She liked the way she looked. It was one of her best features, her face and her body. So she worked hard to always keep them taken care of. Especially being a basketball player. She had to stay in shape, and with her popularity, she needed the face and the charismatic smile that had men and women falling for her. 

She had to look perfect, because in everyone and her own eyes, she _was_ perfect.

* * *

“Did you seriously smoke Jiwoo?” Jungeun questioned disapprovingly. 

“I did… the devils lettuce.” She said jokingly. “But it was once! I swear! I won’t do it again… I didn’t like it much anyway.” She explained. “What about you though? Anything new with you?” 

Jungeun hesitated for a bit, unsure of if she wanted to bring up Sooyoung or not. But the way Jiwoo excitedly looked at her through the screen, she couldn’t help but just say it. “This girl I met at my school recently she—“

“A girl?!” Jiwoo questioned, getting even closer to the camera. “Tell me tell me tell me!!!” 

“Jesus Jiwoo my ears…” Jungeun complained, walking away from her laptop. 

“Sorry! I just, like the idea of you not being a loner.” 

“Okay…?” 

“Sorry!” Jiwoo apologized again. “Just tell me!” 

Jungeun explained who Sooyoung was and how they met. She felt her cheeks growing red the longer she spoke about her though. It wasn’t until she saw Jiwoo’s smile growing that she noticed she’d been rambling about her for some time now.

“Well are you nervous?” 

“What’s there to be nervous about exactly?” Jungeun questioned, trying to pick out an outfit early so she didn’t do it at the last minute. 

“Ya know, a date with a really attractive girl….” Jiwoo teased.

“It’s not a date.” 

“So why are you so keen on picking out a good outfit to look good in?” Jiwoo said, smiling brightly into the camera. Jungeun didn’t think she could get any closer to the camera than she already was.

“Because what’s wrong with dressing up to hang out with a friend Jiwoo?” 

Jiwoo laughed. “A friend? Jungeun, you wear sweatsuits and baseball caps whenever we would hang out. And there were rare occasions when you wore a nice blouse.” She pointed out. “But not crop tops and cute jeans.” 

Jungeun sighed when she looked in the mirror for the 10th time that night, trying to find something that looked good on her. Jiwoo just watched from her end, telling Jungeun what looked good on her. Although everything did, some clothing items didn’t exactly go together. “Your body looks really good in those flowy yellow pants.” Jiwoo complimented. 

“Yeah but… the yellow is far too bright.. I’d attract the entire district with those on.” She groaned. 

“Maybe some jean shorts are the way to go, with a cute blouse like that one.” She said, pointing to the one in Jungeun’s hand. 

“This? Should I wear it in this color or white?” 

“The sky blue looks pretty dreamy. You should wear dark jean shorts.” Jiwoo suggested and Jungeun scrunched up her face.

“You’re like my stylist.” The blonde jokingly said.

“I am.” Jiwoo winked. “You should wear that cute charm bracelet your big brother got you.” 

“No way… I have to get that cleaned. I haven’t worn it in ages. It’s probably all rusty.” She explained. 

“Well. All the holes in your ears will make up for your lack of jewelry.” 

“Jiwoo, it’s a small date that’s probably at a restaurant. Not my fucking wedding day.” Jungeun rolled her eyes.

“You’re right. I should start preparing for that too huh?” She teased, and Jungeun walked over to her laptop, turning off her camera and hearing Jiwoo laugh hysterically.

_**//** _

She thought about Sooyoung as she applied light makeup to her face that next day. That charismatic smile and that soothing voice that coaxed her every single time they spoke. Which wasn’t often. But those few times made her swoon at just the simple look in her eyes and that smile whenever Jungeun spoke. She sighed deeply, running her hands through her hair as her brain was plagued with too many thoughts at once. How was she going to survive longer than 5 minutes with the taller woman? 

She was a natural flirt and she couldn’t even pretend she didn’t feel those eyes on her whenever they spoke. How she studied every feature of hers and how she instinctively bit her lip whenever she spoke. She was reluctant to look in her direction everytime she did that. She was sure her knees would give out, and the last thing she needed was to boost Sooyoung’s ego even more than it already was. She was surprised her head hadn’t tilted her over with how full of air it was. 

She was undeniably attractive with confidence she’d never seen before. Truthfully, it was unbearably annoying, and yes so charming at the same time. Sooyoung had every right to be confident. To Jungeun however, she was just some persistent, flirty ass that chased around wherever she went. Not giving up until she got her way. And yet somehow, she still found her so attractive. It drew her in even more, and that was something she realized she couldn’t resist anymore. It was just a known fact. She was giving into Sooyoung inch by inch. 

Especially with the advice of friends, who encouraged her to just try it even more. Except for one friend, Exy. She didn’t approve of it, but it was mostly because she worried for Jungeun. Sooyoung had tons of buzz around her, and she really didn’t want Jungeun getting hurt. But she wasn’t one to completely cockblock, so she just warned her ahead of time. 

_”I can handle myself.”_ Is what Jungeun told her. Which to some extent, was true. Or at least that’s what she told herself.

 _ **//**_

That next morning, Sooyoung scolded herself for oversleeping. She got dressed quickly after she showered, since she had randomly fallen asleep last night. She usually did that the night before but not this time. It was like the world was against her. She ran out of her home, running down her steps and jumping off of the last one where her feet hit the marble floor. She put on her shoes, angrily dashing out of her home and driving to her destination as she called Heejin. 

She explained what happened and Heejin calmed her down, letting her know everything would be fine and she was sure Jungeun wouldn’t mind. She called her immediately after she spoke to Heejin, letting her know she was on her way. When she arrived, she waited patiently for the woman to come outside. 

The moment she saw the front door open, she got out of her car, running around the passenger side. The taller girl smiled when she spotted Jungeun. Her jaw nearly dropped when she saw Jungeun’s outfit and her gorgeous face the closer she got. Sooyoung took in the sight of her outfit and the cute headband she wore in her hair to match her outfit. She’d never seen someone so attractive, it left her all dizzy. “Wow you look…” She couldn’t even finish her sentence. Sooyoung smiled, reaching out for a hug that didn’t last very long. 

But she felt herself melting from the smell of Jungeun’s intoxicating scent. The lavender smell of her hair and the flower like scent that masked her body. Jungeun nearly jumped away when she felt Sooyoung’s hand on her back, guiding her towards the car. Jungeun was shocked to see the car in front of her. It was a black Porsche. It glimmered when the sunlight bounced off of it, it must’ve been taken to a car wash recently because it looked almost untouched. She was even more shocked when the door was opened, and she saw tan leather seats. But she was even more shocked at Sooyoung opening the door for her, waiting until she was fully in the car before she closed the door. 

The ride was a bit awkward, mainly because Jungeun didn’t have much to say. But Sooyoung tried her best to make her comfortable, playing music as well on their way there. If it was one thing Jungeun would say, her music taste was exquisite. She seemed to really enjoy R&b music, which Jungeun also really liked. She enjoyed pop music here and there, but it wasn’t her favorite. Sooyoung would randomly glance over and smile at her, leaving the blonde a blushing mess. Her perfume was exactly what Jungeun would have imagined. To be fair, she hadn’t been this close to Sooyoung, at least for an extended amount of time. It was always in passing or whenever Sooyoung could pin her against a wall somewhere, holding her hostage with those brown eyes that oozed confidence. When they finally arrived at the park, the taller woman moved outside again, quickly opening the door for Jungeun and then bringing the seat down.

She grabbed the things from her backseat, a blanket and the basket that she stuffed everything into. The sun was still up, and she smiled to herself. The plan would go well, she had no reason to stress herself out so much. She gestured for Jungeun to follow her, and she was surprised to see so many people. “It’s pretty easy to get lost around here when it gets busy this time of year. Festivals and carnivals happen a lot.. Plus— this place I’m taking you to is secret.” She winked, moving past the trees and allowing Jungeun to walk in front of her after they traveled down a long trail

The walk was worth it though once they had gotten by those tall trees. “Whoa…” She gasped, looking out at the water gently moving and the festival that resided across the lake from them. “It’s beautiful here.” Sooyoung smiled at the compliment, happy that she liked it already. 

“I know.” Sooyoung smiled. “You’re beautiful too.” She added, grabbing Jungeun’s hand and helping her sit down, even though she didn’t really need help at all. “I hope you’re hungry.” Sooyoung added as the blonde sat down. “I made everything myself.” 

“Really?” 

“Mhm.” Sooyoung smiled, pulling out two glasses. Sooyoung brought out a tiny table that fit in between them, placing the glasses onto it and pulling out a bottle of wine.

“This table is the cutest thing I’ve ever seen.” Jungeun giggled.

“It comes in handy.” Sooyoung laughed, pouring the wine into each of their glasses. 

“I can see that.” Jungeun smiled, watching as Sooyoung unpacked the food. She liked how her hair blew in the wind, and how the sun complimented her skin, making her glow more than she already did. 

She really liked the outfit Sooyoung wore as well. A silky beige shirt that had the top few buttons undone, tucked into the blue jean shorts she wore. A gold necklace pressed against her skin and the cross dingling just below her collarbones. If Jungeun looked too hard, she’d catch another glimpse of the black laced bra Sooyoung wore. She cleared her throat when a hand came into her view, gently placing the foods onto the tiny table between them. 

Sooyoung also sported what looked like a really expensive gold bracelet with a plate that had her name engraved into it. Not to mention the 2 rings; on her ring finger and another on her pointer finger. Jungeun really tried to stay focused, but the woman across from her was just too damn attractive. “You okay?” Sooyoung questioned, noticing how Jungeun was losing her focus. “I’m not boring you so soon am I?” 

“What?” Jungeun replied. “N-No, of course not. I’m just, really impressed by this view.” She responded truthfully. She didn’t say which view in particular, but Sooyoung didn’t catch on surprisingly.

“It is pretty nice isn’t it? This place has festivals all year round. So there’s usually fireworks happening across from us. But they usually wait until night, so they can do it when the stars are out.” She explained. 

“Do you bring every girl you like here?” 

“Who said that I like you?” Sooyoung teased. Althought it was extremely obvious that she did like her. “Besides, I don’t go on dates. So no, believe it or not, you’re the first person I’ve brought here.” And Jungeun could tell her words were true. She didn’t know how, but she just felt it. 

“Fair enough..” 

“So, I heard you’re a transfer student, and a medical student.. How’s that treating you? Sooyoung questioned as they began to eat. 

“Um, it’s stressful. I like the school and well, medical school isn’t kind. But I try to keep my mind off of it to be fair.” 

“Well—“ Sooyoung began, filling her own glass up with some more wine. “I’m the perfect person for that.” She smiled, drinking some of the fruity wine. Jungeun also took a sip, hiding the grimace on her face. It was bitter, but she could get used to it. 

“So— what do you study?” Jungeun questioned, wanting to get to know Sooyoung a little more.

Sooyoung sighed. “I’m studying neuroscience.”

Jungeun laughed. “Yeah okay. No seriously…” 

Sooyoung looked at her like she was crazy. “You don’t believe me?” She questioned, tilting her head, and when she didn’t get a response she just chuckled. “Do I really come off as some sort of idiot?”

Jungeun froze at that question, instantly moving to correct herself in case she came off asshole-ish. “No it’s not that it’s just—“

“I’m popular.” Sooyoung finished the sentence for her.

“Um… yeah.” 

“Jungeun. Popularity and smarts aren’t on the same playing field. I just happen to be one of the few who has both.” She explained with a cocky smirk, taking another sip of her wine. 

“So the whole basketball thing, is that a backup plan?” She questioned and Sooyoung laughed at the idea of that.

“No actually basketball _is_ my plan… neuroscience is the backup plan… gotta satisfy my parents somehow.” She muttered the last part, grabbing a cracker and a piece of cheese. “What about you? What’s your plan?” 

“Well.. hopefully one day I’m saving lives.” 

“Do you know what field you’re going into?” 

“Cardio.” She answered, and Sooyoung smiled.

“Hmmm. I think there might be something wrong with my heart actually.” The red haired woman playfully said, making Jungeun giggle a little bit. Sooyoung could get used to hearing that. 

They kept eating until Jungeun physically couldn’t anymore. And they finished a little more wine, keeping it at a limit since Sooyoung still had to drive home. Jungeun also didn’t want her parents to see her even slightly tipsy. She didn’t have the energy for them. Not today. Because today was such a good day.

While Sooyoung packed up the food to give them some more space on the blanket, Jungeun stood up, walking over to the lake and looking into the water that slowly became darker as the night fell. It tended to get dark earlier these days. The carnival from across began to slowly light up, and she enjoyed every second of it. Sooyoung just watched, waiting patiently for the girl to come back to her original spot. “Everything okay?” 

“Yeah.” Jungeun responded quickly. “Just wanted to take a closer look at it all. This is seriously something I’d see on like tumblr.” 

“Tumblr?” 

“You don’t know what that is?” Jungeun questioned and Sooyoung shrugged.

“Heard of it. Never used it though.” 

“Maybe it’s better it stays that way then. That app has gone to shit anyway.” They both laughed. 

Sooyoung hesitated to say her next few words, but she did it anyway. It was worth a try. “My friends are having a party… not sure if you’re into things like that. Well, you don’t seem like someone that’s into things like that. But if you want to come, I’d like for you to come hangout. They’ve been asking about you anyway.” She confessed, the last part slipping out.

Jungeun smiled brightly. “Already talking to your friends about me?” She laughed. “It’s alright. I tell my friend about you too. I told her it’d be good to make another friend.” 

_Friend_. 

Sooyoung quickly shook off the way her heart reacted to that. “Yeah. It’s good to make friends.” She said, trying to keep a smile on her face. She ignored the way that made her heart shatter for some reason other than obviously being infatuated by this woman. “... Anyways, I’d like for you to come. You don’t have to but, parties can be fun.” 

“I’d agree but I don’t go to many.” Jungeun admitted, and she could feel Sooyoung eyeing her.

“I think you’d have fun.” She smiled. “Wear a cute outfit like the one you have on. Have a few drinks. Make a few friends.” She encouraged and Jungeun smiled at the slick compliment she made.

“I’ll think about it.” 

She was shocked that Jungeun didn’t shut her down immediately. “That’s better than a simple no.” Sooyoung smiled, watching as Jungeun stood up and walked back over to the edge of the grass. Sooyoung followed her this time, slowly rising off of the blanket she sat atop and walking towards the blonde. They didn’t speak, just allowing the wind to blow into their hair. 

“This is the first time this past month i’ve felt so at peace.” Jungeun admitted with a laugh. “Even when i’m not in school I feel like I succumb to it.”

“I don’t come here often.. but when I do, I tend to just… relax and enjoy the sun and scenery. It gives you time to think.” Sooyoung responded. 

“It’d be a good study spot.” Jungeun muttered, watching the tiniest sized fish moving throughout the water by her feet.

Sooyoung watched her closely, feeling her mind go blank as she took in how beautiful Jungeun was. “I don’t mean to be so blunt but… I have never seen anyone so stunning in my life.” She complimented and Jungeun’s face grew hot as she slowly turned to Sooyoung.

“Me?”

“Mhm.” Sooyoung smiled. “You look way too good in that outfit I mean…” She smirked, biting her lip a little and making Jungeun even more shy.

“Stop…” 

“Sorry. I just like to admire you.” 

The sun had gone down drastically and the festival across from them shined brightly. The lights reflecting prettily off of the water that separated them. Jungeun checked her watch. “I should probably get going.. I have to watch my younger sister today since my brother is going out.” She explained sadly.

“No it’s fine.” Sooyoung said, watching as Jungeun slowly walked back to the blanket they sat on. 

“I can help you pack up though. I have manners.” 

“I wouldn’t complain much if you didn’t.” Sooyoung playfully said, folding the blanket up and placing it into the basket. Jungeun waited patiently for Sooyoung to finish what she was doing before they walked back down the trail together. They passed plenty of couples and other people who visited those trails. Sooyoung walked Jungeun to the car under the moonlight that lit the area gently. 

“So about that party—“

“I’ll send you the address. You decide if you’ll come or not. I won’t force you.” Sooyoung smiled as she leaned against the car.

“Thank you..” 

“It’s no problem.. I had fun tonight.” She admitted with a smile that was somehow brighter than the moon that shined down on them. “Let’s get you home.” Sooyoung said, her pretty eyes looking over Jungeun once again shamelessly. Taking in how good she looked in that outfit. Obsessed with the way those pants hugged her hips. She bit her lip as she opened the car door for her, smiling and running back to her side after placing the things in the trunk of her car. 

She didn’t talk much on the ride back home, but Sooyoung didn’t mind. Jungeun wasn’t a talker, and that was okay with her. She actually didn’t mind the silence while she listened to a few of her favorite tunes. 

Jungeun dreaded going back home because despite how stubborn she was when it came to Sooyoung, it was the most fun she’s had in a very long time. For once she had a good day. And as much as she hated admitting it, she was completely infatuated with Sooyoung’s face. Her soft features and that stupid smile that haunted her existence. She couldn’t ignore it, or her. It was nearly impossible and no matter how much she fought, she felt her heart beating against the walls of her chest whenever Sooyoung would look in her direction that night. The look in her eyes was gentle, except when she was ogling over Jungeun’s face or body shamelessly. 

It was no point in fighting her anymore for that. She was obviously attracted to Jungeun in many ways. Throughout their ‘date’, their skin would briefly touch at times and Jungeun felt her heart stop and an overwhelming tingly feeling going throughout her body. She cleared her throat too, moving away slightly to keep herself from dying of cardiac arrest. As much as she liked to deny it not only to herself, but those around her, Sooyoung had an effect on her. That smile made her heart race, and the minimal space between them made her heart stop whenever it happened. Her laugh was infectious as well, the way she smiled brightly while she did it, and her nose cutely scrunched up. The way she ran her hand through her hair, tossing it to one side or tucking it behind her cute pierced ears. 

How pretty her lips were and how attentive she was whenever Jungeun even opened her mouth for a second. She was genuinely surprised by Sooyoung’s personality. She was actually a lot softer than she’d expected, however, this was one ‘date’ after all. She was sure she didn't know _everything_ about her. But of course that wasn’t possible anyways. 

“Thank you.. for this. I had fun tonight. “ She smiled, her body leaning against the car. Usually Sooyoung would freak out when someone did that, but she couldn’t give a single fuck when Jungeun did it. She was too busy looking at her, taking in just how good she looked tonight. She felt her body tense up as Sooyoung slowly leaned into her. She wasn’t sure how to react, and despite her heart rate going faster than she could even count. It somehow calmed down when she felt soft lips on her cheek, lips so soft she couldn’t even tell if it was real or not. When Sooyoung backed away, Jungeun stared at her with dazed eyes. 

“Goodnight Jungeun. I hope we can.. go on one of these… ‘ _dates_ again.” She said, a smile that was obviously meant to tease her and get under her skin. 

_Congrats Sooyoung. You’re officially breaking me. You and that stupid smile_ , she thought to herself as the girl backed away from her. Jungeun placed her hand onto the spot that Sooyoung placed her lips, smiling to herself with content as she watched the girl walk to her side of the car. It was something so small, but it made her heart race and her palms sweaty. She was surprised she could keep her hands from shaking so hard. She quickly walked to her front door, praying her parents were far away from the windows and somewhere else in the house.

She had _so_ much to tell Jiwoo that night.

* * *

She explained everything that happened that night while she changed into some comfier clothes, and the entire time Jiwoo screamed like a teenage girl.

“Well. From what you’ve been telling me, she must be really damn good looking huh?”

“Too good looking.” Jungeun admitted quickly, placing her hands over her face. “Her smile.. her eyes, her skin? Amazing. She doesn’t even seem real. She’s like something or someone you’d make up in your head. Except, she was right there.” Jungeun said, her brain finally processing just how out of her league Sooyoung was. 

“Oooo someone is whipped already.” Jiwoo teased.

“Shut up. It’s not that.. you’d be the same way if you had someone attractive obviously flirting with you… she had _no_ shame!” 

“So she’s confident? Who cares? It’s a good thing. She could help you get out of your little shell.” Jiwoo encouraged.

“What makes you think I want her to do that? I was just telling you a little about her.” Jungeun defended.

“Her smile… her eyes…” Jiwoo dramatically repeated, teasing the blonde and making her cheeks go red. “You definitely like her, and if not that, you’re at least intrigued by the idea of her.” 

And Jungeun honestly couldn’t deny that. She was intrigued by Sooyoung, but how could she not be? It was so obvious Sooyoung was flirting with her and eyeing her to make her a flustered mess. Purposely getting in her personal space to make her feel small underneath her gaze. Letting Jungeun know she had the upper hand at all times. It was quite attractive the more she thought about it. 

“Shut up.” 

“Hey it’s okay. You might like her. You might not. But what’s the problem with trying?”

“I don’t have time for relationships.” 

“Does anyone? We still do it.” Jiwoo pushed a little bit. “I’m just saying, I’m sure you’ll find a balance. Besides, it’s not like your family will find out. College is different from high school, your parents won’t show up for school meetings.” 

“I’m not entirely sure how to feel about what you just said to me. But I’m sure in some strange universe, your terminology makes sense.” 

“Don’t go using big words on me.” Jiwoo pouted, smiling immediately after. Jungeun removed her makeup before getting into bed.

“Well, I should probably sleep now. I’ve had a long day.” 

“I bet. Chat tomorrow?” Jiwoo smiled.

“Yeah. Chat tomorrow.” 

“Mwah!” Jiwoo kissed the camera, watching as Jungeun blew her a kiss before hanging up the video chat.

* * *

“Well?” Bora questioned that following Wednesday, only because that was the only time she ran into her that week. “How was it?” 

“What?”

The taller woman rolled her eyes. “Your date. With Sooyoung…?” 

“Oh it was.. it was really nice.” She explained, telling Bora how good Sooyoung looked that day. “She’s… surprisingly… soft…” She said with uncertainty.

“Soft?”

Jungeun sat up fully from the grass they lay on. “She.. she prepared a picnic.. no restaurant. Just us, the food she prepared and a pretty lake with the best view.” She explained, smiling softly as she remembered that moment. How beautiful Sooyoung was that night, how gentle she was with Jungeun. The way her soft lips touched her cheek when she dropped her off at home. For the first time ever she spotted innocence in those brown eyes that watched her every move. 

“Geez… she must really like you…” Bora pointed out, exhaling loudly as she thought about how single she was. “I wish I had that.” 

“It’s an infatuation. It’ll disappear before you know it..” 

“Lies.” Bora said with wide eyes, watching the careless expression on Jungeun’s face. “You have no idea how lucky you are.” 

“Bora…” 

They were interrupted by a familiar voice. “Hey.” 

_Do not turn around fast.. you know who it is._

She took her time, turning around and seeing the red haired woman smiling at her. A bouquet of flowers in her hand. “Jungeun I uh—“ She said shyly, and for the first time Jungeun saw another side of Sooyoung. A shyer less confident side. “I got these for you.. they’re um, they’re Hydrangeas.” She explained and Jungeun wasn’t sure what that meant. But she was too infatuated by Sooyoung’s face and body to listen properly. She was wearing the sexiest outfit that day. A black crop top that showed off her collarbones and her red hair down her shoulders. Her black jeans and the black choker that fit perfectly around her neck. 

Her jeans hugged her waist too perfectly and the crop top was far too high as it displayed her perfect abs and that amazing skin tone that made Jungeun drool like some hungry animal. She was in a daze until Sooyoung called her name, snapping her out of it. She was caught staring, and Sooyoung couldn’t but smirk as she handed the flowers to Jungeun, but not without removing a flower from the bouquet first. Their hands touched for a simple moment and she nearly gasped aloud at how soft her hands were, and the scent of her wafted over to Jungeun briefly, making her dizzy and completely stuck as she took in Sooyoung’s presence.

 _Stupid._ Jungeun thought to herself. 

“Um. Thank you.” Jungeun forced a smile. Although it wasn’t a forced one because she didn’t want to smile, but rather because she didn’t want Sooyoung to see how affected she was by not only her outfit but her presence. 

Despite coming into contact with Jungeun, she hadn’t really noticed that this was the closest she’d ever been to Jungeun like this, in a setting like this, and she could smell the scent of her perfume. It was just as intoxicating as the smell of the flowers she’d given her moments ago.. And her side profile was something straight out of a magazine as she turned to Bora with hesitant eyes.. Her skin was smooth and to be quite fair, Jungeun was much paler than Sooyoung was. Her lips were irresistibly pink, and she scolded herself slightly for staring so hard. She watched as Jungeun’s delicate hands handled the flowers with care. 

Sooyoung was in a complete trance watching Jungeun, taking in her features, watching how concentrated she was on her task. “These flowers are really pretty… you didn’t have to get me these...” Jungeun pointed out, looking at the flowers in her grasp. Jungeun watched as Sooyoung’s hand reached out to her, placing the blue flower gently in her hair. The blonde woman didn’t even know what to say, she just felt herself stuck in place as she watched Sooyoung’s soft eyes smile at the flower in Jungeun’s hair. 

“I know. But I just wanted the pretty flowers… and _flower_ , to have an owner that is _just_ as pretty as this bouquet is.” She said smoothly, their eyes stuck on each other without saying a word. 

“I-I don’t even know what to—“ Jungeun began just before she was interrupted by Sooyoung. 

“You don’t have to say anything just um.. just accept it?” She questioned shyly. “I actually have a huge powerpoint in about 15 minutes so I have to go prep with my group of friends.. but um.” She shyly said, looking down at her feet before looking back up at Jungeun. Her brown impatient eyes waiting for Sooyoung’s next words. “About that party—“

“I’ll come.” Jungeun quickly said.

“Well yeah but— I meant, I was going to ask, could I take you out again? I mean, you don’t have to I just..” She sighed deeply, looking around before her eyes found Jungeun again. “Look. I really like you. And I’d like to.. know more about you. So I’m asking—“

“She wants to go on a date with you.” Exy quickly chimed in, sitting on the grass where Bora sat, leaning against the tree as well with her books. 

Sooyoung shook her head in disbelief before turning back to Jungeun. “What she said.” She smiled brightly. 

“Um… sure… I don’t know when i’m free again but yeah—“ 

“Just let me know okay?” Sooyoung smiled, seeing the blue flower in the blonde hair once again and looking at how beautiful Jungeun was. She was completely enthralled by her. If she could, she’d stand there and just watch her for hours. Watching her small antics. The way she spoke and expressed herself using her hands. The way her lips pouted every time she spoke. The way she used her facial features to express every word that left those tempting lips. She was beautiful, and she was perfect. 

“Okay…” Jungeun quietly replied, shyly fixing her hair as she felt Sooyoung’s gaze on her.

“Bye Jungeun, and um, bye to you two as well.” She smiled at the two other girls as they shielded themselves from the sun. Jungeun was surprised they didn’t shield themselves from the brightness of Sooyoung’s smile alone. But they said bye back, waving her off as she walked away. 

Jungeun was smiling, trying to hide it but it was impossible. But for a brief moment, her eyes met the eyes of someone she’d seen a lot in the past 2 weeks. It was Doyeon, standing with a group of friends, watching Jungeun intensely before turning away with her arms crossed. The blonde didn’t think much of it, turning in her friend's direction with her eyes trained on the bouquet in her hands. 

“Someone is whipped.” Exy commented, laughing as she read her notes in her book.

“Definitely.” Bora agreed.

“Am not!” Jungeun defended, but she knew she wouldn’t win this fight. So she stopped trying, just letting her brain run wild as she thought about Sooyoung for the 50th time that day.

_Okay… maybe she was a little whipped for her._

* * *

“Wow you look—“

“Sexy?” Sooyoung teased. “I know. You do too Jinsoul.” She hugged her tightly. 

Jinsoul laughed as she moved aside as her friends stepped into the crowded party, the music playing as the birthday party decorations littered the entire home. Sooyoung instantly grabbed a shot, downing it and dancing a little to the music that wrapped around them. Heejin stayed close by Sooyoung, taking a shot of something too and grimacing at the strong taste. She tried to take it like a trooper, the same way Sooyoung did, but that drink was clearly something out of her league. 

“God—“ She coughed and Sooyoung giggled, patting her back supportively. “Not for me.” 

“Not at all.” Sooyoung laughed. “Let’s go dance a little.” 

_**//** _

Jungeun hadn’t shown up for a while, it took some time for her to get to that side of town, and even when she did get there, she didn’t spot anyone familiar. It took awhile for Jinsoul to spot her, smiling brightly and quickly walking over to greet her. 

“Why didn’t you come and look for me?!” Jinsoul scolded harmlessly. “You look… wow.” She complimented, smiling with the cute birthday crown atop her head. “Like… sexy!!” She smiled, and Jungeun shyly looked down. Nodding her head agreeingly as Jinsoul grabbed her hand and took her to get a drink. Sooyoung and Heejin were too busy dancing to notice the two girls passing them. They were having so much fun. Especially Heejin, who was having as much fun as she could before she had class later that next day. The house was getting hot with the amount of people filling it up, dancing and crowding the area. 

Jinsoul and Jungeun also danced, a bit further away from Heejin and Sooyoung. Laughing and smiling. Jungeun felt a bit more comfortable being with someone familiar. Jinsoul encouraged her to drink a little more, and slowly but surely she could see Jungeun loosening up a bit. She relished in it, dancing closely with the girl until she needed a breather. She felt like the alcohol in her system, on top of the lack of oxygen in the house, was making her dizzy. Like she couldn’t think. She felt like she was dreaming it, but she swore she felt Jinsoul’s hands on her hips beforehand. Jinsoul let her go, walking throughout the crowd and bumping into someone.

She apologized quickly, but was shocked to see it was a familiar face. The familiar face of a woman she’d been looking for since she got there. “S-Sooyoung?” She called out, seeing the alluring outfit she was in.

“Jungeun?” Sooyoung chuckled, although her breath had been taken away from the outfit Jungeun wore. “You look um— I don’t know how to say this respectively…” 

“What?” The blonde questioned.

“You look… really fucking sexy.” Sooyoung said confidently. “And I mean that in a very respectful manner. But that… outfit looks really good on you..” She smiled. Jungeun wore a black lace bra with a black silky vest-like top. Her black jean shorts and converses. Her collarbones on display as usual, temping Sooyoung more than they should have. In some ways, she was an animal, but with Jungeun, she was so delicate. She looked at the blonde like she was the most beautiful woman in the world. And Jungeun felt that every time she looked at her. She couldn’t deny how weak she felt when Sooyoung looked down on her, biting her lip. The height difference between the two of them did something to her. Every time she looked up she could see how powerful Sooyoung felt. 

“You look really good too.” She smiled.

“Heejin.” The short girl introduced, wearing a scarecrow costume because she was pranked into thinking it was a party where you wear one. Jungeun looked at her confused, but Sooyoung quickly spoke.

“Ah right. This is Heejin. My bestfriend.” Sooyoung introduced. “She’s usually not silly looking like this.” 

“Sooyoung…” Heejin whined.

“Right I uh— I was actually just, I need a breath of fresh air… or something.” The blonde woman pointed out and the moment she walked off, the two girls gave each other a knowing look. 

“Go ahead.” Heejin sighed, and Sooyoung didn’t waste another second standing there. She followed Jungeun outside, overlooking the covered up pool and the trash that littered the area from the trashy party goers. 

The blonde took in a few deep breaths, pressing her hand against her head as she felt the drunkest she’d ever been. She figured she was all alone for now, needing a moment to herself to breathe and think about her choices moving forward. She definitely didn’t need anymore drinks. “Hi.” She heard a gentle voice say, and she turned around, fully taking in Sooyoung’s outfit under this somewhat brighter lighting. 

“Sooyoung.. Hi.” She quickly tucked her hair behind her ear. “You uh, you didn’t have to follow me.” 

“I know. But I did.” She admitted. “Believe it or not… but I like seeing your face.” 

“Well… at least you’re honest.” Jungeun laughed, walking further into the backyard. Sooyoung followed closely behind her, taking in the view from the back. She’d never seen anyone so gorgeous, even while facing away from her. “I’m not too big on parties.” 

“Really? I thought college girls were all about parties.”

“Not me.” 

She smiled, placing her hand in her hair as she watched Jungeun slowly walk a little further away from her. “Will I still be able to take you out for dinner soon?”

Jungeun giggled. “I’ve never met someone as confident as you are.” She confessed.

“And I’ve never met someone as beautiful as you are.” She softly said, and Jungeun’s heart lunged forward. She slowly turned to Sooyoung, who smiled gently at her. “Sorry I… I just… I’m looking at you right now, and wow… you are… an amazing view.” She admitted.

“I-I appreciate that a lot. Thank you.” Jungeun shyly said, standing stiffly in place. 

“I’m glad you came.. to the party I mean. I didn’t expect you to, but you did.” Sooyoung pointed out.

“I wanted to see you.” She admitted. “Before I got all drowned in my work.. you know..” 

“Right.” Sooyoung sadly said. The one thing she hated more than anything in that moment, was their conflicting schedules. Sooyoung was the captain of the basketball team, and not only that, but she was preparing for their upcoming semi finals in the next 3 weeks. But on top of that, there were exams. It caused her stress levels to skyrocket, but she managed to control her emotions. Besides; all that mattered at that moment was Jungeun. 

Jungeun ran a hand through her soft blonde hair, trying to concentrate on her breathing and her balance. Her eyes slowly traveled to Sooyoung’s side profile. Her perfect jawline and her pretty eyelashes. Her tanned skin and her irresistible lips. She felt her heart skip a beat when Sooyoung turned to her, so she quickly looked away. Anywhere but at the tanned woman beside her.

Sooyoung didn’t say anything else for a moment, just turning and observing Jungeun’s flushed cheeks and her wobbly movements. Sooyoung turned her head slightly, surprised that Jungeun was already looking at her. 

The taller girl felt her legs go weak at those soft brown eyes that looked back at her. “Do you always look at people that way?” 

“What way?” Jungeun questioned.

“Like you’re observing them…” Sooyoung pointed out. “You think I don’t notice?” 

“Sooyoung—“

“I’m just asking, because I want to make sure I’m not crazy for doing the same.” 

“Doing what the same?” The blonde questioned, her breath hitching when Sooyoung moved closer. That familiar scent surrounding her and pulling her in. Making her weak for the woman in front of her like some needy puppy. 

“Admiring, observing, wanting someone.” 

“What makes you think I want anything?” 

“Why else would you come to this party? A change of scenery? A drink or two that you could get at home? Or… because I’m here?” She questioned, her finger gently placed beneath the blonde’s chin, tilting her head upward. 

“Sooyoung I—“

“Can I kiss you?” 

“What?” Jungeun questioned, unsure if she heard that right. But her eyes never left Sooyoung’s, not for one moment.

“Can I… kiss you?” She asked once more, her lips gently grazing Jungeun’s almost teasingly. She felt her body on fire, wanting to badly press her lips against Jungeun’s. Her hand resting gently on Jungeun’s cheek, their noses pressed so closely together they could’ve become one at this point.

“Y-Ye—“

“Everything okay?” They heard a voice say, causing Jungeun to instantly back away from Sooyoung’s alluring temptations. Sooyoung sighed to herself and looked in the direction of the person interrupting. “Heejin was looking for you.” Jinsoul added.

“Right.” Sooyoung laughed off. “Thanks Jinsoul.” She smiled.

Jinsoul’s eyes fell as they landed on Jungeun for a brief moment, before turning back to Sooyoung with her jaw clenched. “Sorry to interrupt.” 

“No it’s okay.” Sooyoung smiled. “We were just about to come back inside anyway.” She turned to Jungeun before quickly moving to go back inside. 

Jungeun wasn’t even sure what to say or do, she just stood there, the feeling of Sooyoung’s lips lightly ghosting hers haunting her terribly. Sooyoung walked inside and Jinsoul eyed her as she walked up to the stairs. But Jungeun didn’t speak, or say anything for that matter. She just went inside, and the night went on. Except drinks found their way into her hand, back to back, and she downed them, because why not? She’d never done it before, so why not do it for a change? It was better than her racing mind. Her thoughts were full of Sooyoung, and also her unbearable parents. It was the first time in her life she felt so relieved. 

She couldn’t shake that moment that she and Sooyoung shared. How her lips ghosted hers. How her strong perfume wrapped around her and brought her closer in. How their noses touched briefly and their lips ghosted each other for a short amount of time. 

_She wished it was longer_.

Despite her stubbornness, she couldn’t deny the attraction she felt towards Sooyoung. She’d be a fool to deny what she felt for her. Even if not romantically, she was attracted to how she looked. How could she not be attracted to someone like that? Someone so confident and sure of what she wanted? Someone who confidently chased after Jungeun despite how many times she rejected her. No matter how uninterested Jungeun seemed, Sooyoung still tried. For once in her life, someone actually tried, because Sooyoung saw her worth, and maybe that was bad. But that drew her in even more. She liked feeling wanted.. she’d never felt something like that before, until recently. 

Not until she met Sooyoung. 

The same Sooyoung that watched her carefully from across the room.

_**//** _

“She’s not looking too good.” Heejin pointed out, watching as Jungeun wobbled all over the place. Sooyoung leaned against a wall, watching over Jungeun carefully as she downed her own drink. 

“She’ll be fine.” Sooyoung assured.

“I don’t know…” 

“She will be.” Sooyoung said, downing her drink entirely and passing the cup to Heejin. She walked through the crowd, pushing anyone in her way to the side, her eyes set on the blonde woman in the crowd. 

Jungeun kept dancing, laughing to a woman beside her, one she didn’t know. Her vision became blurry and her body became warm all over and she could hardly feel her legs. They were there, but they didn’t belong to her anymore. “Sooyoung?”

“Are you okay?” Sooyoung questioned, and just as she asked, the woman stumbled into her arms, and just as expected, Sooyoung caught her. Physically and metaphorically. Sooyoung didn’t say much more, she simply picked Jungeun up in her arms. And the blonde wrapped her arms around her neck, allowing herself to be carried in her drunken state.

“Sooyoung?” Heejin called, seeing Jinsoul across the room in her own world.

“It’s fine. I got her.” Sooyoung assured, and Heejin nodded, following her friend up the stairs. Sooyoung opened the door to one of the rooms, the guest room she usually would find herself in when she stayed the night at Jinsoul’s.

She gently placed Jungeun down onto the bed, the blonde smiling up at her. “I’m drunk.” She laughed, and Sooyoung shook her head.

“I know.” She said, sitting on the bed beside Jungeun, making sure she was okay. “But don’t worry I’ll um— I’ll grab you some water.” Sooyoung said, standing up and heading for the door. But she was stopped when she heard Jungeun’s voice again. 

“You were going to kiss me..” She pointed out, and Sooyoung felt her body falter, before turning around to see Jungeun sitting up on the bed she just laid her down onto.

“I-I—“

“Why did you stop?”

“Because Jinsoul—“

“You shouldn’t have stopped.” Jungeun spoke, walking towards Sooyoung in the dimly lit room. 

“Jungeun you’re drunk…” 

“I’m fine.” She lied, and Sooyoung scoffed.

“You can barely stand.” She said, watching as Jungeun wobbled over to her, placing her hands onto Sooyoung’s shoulders. But Sooyoung didn’t hesitate to place her hands onto the hips of the blonde, pulling her in just a little closer as she looked into her brown eyes. Her beautiful blonde hair flipped onto one side and her neck on display for her. Jungeun hadn’t noticed it, but Sooyoung was nearly sweating at the sight, trying to keep her composure.

“You need to lie down Jungeun—“

“Kiss me.” 

“What?” 

“Kiss me.” 

“Jungeun.. we— you’re drunk. Okay?” Sooyoung said, gently moving her back towards the bed. It’s not that she didn’t want to kiss Jungeun, but she never initiated it beforehand. She didn’t want Jungeun’s drunk antics. But she couldn’t help but nearly fall victim to her every second passing. Those brown eyes and those soft pink lips that tempted her. It was strange, how with Jungeun she didn’t want to rush a single thing.

With any other girl, it led to being in her bed or some random college party room, or a dorm, having sex and forgetting about each other within 3 days. No dates, no reconnections, just meaningless sex and moving on with their lives. But Jungeun, she wanted to take it slow. Everything was just so _different_ about her. She could relax, and take her time. There was no rush. She wanted to do this right. But what did she expect? Jungeun was younger than her, she didn’t want some real relationship. She wanted meaningless things. Maybe sex, a few kisses here and there and some gifts to make her feel precious. 

But Jungeun wasn’t like that. Not at all.

She grabbed Sooyoung, pulling her in closely and pressed her lips against hers. And Sooyoung didn’t back away. She couldn't. Not with how her body melted against the blonde woman’s. She pressed her lips against hers, gently, until Jungeun’s legs hit the bed and she fell back. And no matter how many times Sooyoung imagined or even dreamt about how Jungeun’s lips probably felt like, how soft they would feel against hers, her fantasies didn’t even come close to how they felt in that moment. The blonde felt herself losing to Sooyoung’s intoxicating smell and those soft lips against hers.

After some point, Jungeun felt the kiss becoming more aggressive, needy and desperate. It was what Sooyoung has wanted, what she yearned for. She felt Sooyoung’s soft gentle hands on her neck, completely confusing her brain from the different tempos. Sooyoung was better than she’d ever imagined.

_Not that she ever imagined Sooyoung’s lips on hers._

Well… maybe she did. Once or twice. Specifically in that moment where Sooyoung placed that flower gently into her blonde locks, smiling softly as if she was proud of herself. Jungeun had never been kissed like that, or kissed by any woman, for that matter. Every kiss she’d ever had with a guy, was in no way on the same level as this one. She could hardly breathe and yet that made her want more of the tanned woman who caressed her gently, pulling her closer. She drew heavy breaths here and there, feeling Sooyoung’s hands pulling her closer by the waist. Jungeun couldn’t focus on anything, and despite her body full of alcohol at that moment, she could feel her body sobered up, but not her mind. She felt every touch of Sooyoung’s fingertips, carefully and shyly grazing her bare skin. 

In that moment, Jungeun realized she had a thing for kissing. She enjoyed every second of this, and it was actually her only real kiss when she thought about it. Sooyoung was patient and Jungeun was the complete opposite, desperately needing some control in the situation. In at least _one_ situation in her life. She was impatient, she needed to feel this. This feeling of want and need even if not on her end, at least Sooyoung’s. 

The longer she stood there, the more she felt her brain trying to block out the past week she had at home. The unbearable sound of her mother’s voice. The hiding the bruise printed on her face from her mother. Her siblings looked at her with sorrow and desperately tried to get her to talk to them. Especially her older brother, Younghoon, who cared about her more than anything even when he didn’t show it. She wanted to forget about it all. 

And before she knew it, her tongue slipped into the taller woman’s mouth, standing on her tippy toes to stay leveled with her. She didn’t hold back, and before she knew it, Sooyoung was on top of her and as afraid as she felt, she felt needed. She felt worth something, she felt like someone wanted her. It wasn’t like anything she’d felt before. She’d been with men, but nothing compared to what she felt right now. They never had sex, or even got this far. Just a few make out sessions here and there. A part of her brain was telling her to stop, but the other half wanted this so badly. In some way. She needed reassurance and in that moment; she wasn’t thinking straight. She just wanted Sooyoung, _badly_. She had the most attractive person she’d ever seen in her life above her. Not just any attractive person, it was _Sooyoung.._. _The_ Sooyoung. 

Popular, million dollar smile, luxurious car and extreme charisma that had her swept off her feet within seconds. All Sooyoung had to do was look at her and Jungeun felt her heart do a weird little flip. 

She lied there, looking up into Sooyoung’s brown tempting eyes. Soft and relaxed as she caressed Jungeun’s cheek and then moved slowly up to move her hair gently from her face. She was overwhelmed in ways she couldn’t explain. There was this intoxicating feeling of being overwhelmed, but wanting it more and more as the seconds passed. Sooyoung was pressed closely against her body, kissing her so gently that she was afraid this was all a dream. She’d never felt lips this soft, this warm and needy against hers. She’d never felt lips that wanted the same thing as her. For someone on the other end to want her just as badly as she wanted them no matter how much she denied it, it felt so fucking good. It was something she denied, not just to herself, but to everyone else. 

But not for a second, did Sooyoung take advantage of her. Not like those other men she’d been with, who pushed their luck. Sooyoung was gentle, and she followed the woman below her. Not overstepping. Not doing anything too much or too little. She basked in the feeling of those soft lips that she eyed for so long and dreamt about, thought about. Feeling her soft hands roaming her body timidly yet so needily. 

But it didn’t go any further than that. They just kissed each other, softly, needily, threading their fingers through each other's hair as the music flowed throughout the house. They were alone, and despite their drunkness, they ended up in each other’s arms. The way it was supposed to be. And they didn’t stop, not until they were out of breath, panting and gasping for air as they looked into each other’s brown eyes that melted like chocolate into Jungeun’s brain. She’d never forget that flushed look on Sooyoung’s face as she gently pushed Jungeun’s hair from her face, smiling softly as she traced the outline of Jungeun’s features.

“I’m really drunk…” Jungeun mumbled, allowing Sooyoung’s soft fingers to touch her skin. Her body heat radiated off of her and wrapped Jungeun into a warm hug of some sort. She didn’t move, she was so into Sooyoung, even if her brain didn’t fully allow her to digest that yet. 

The last thing she saw was Sooyoung above her. Placing gentle kisses onto her forehead, moving her hair from her face, retracing every part of her face to imprint it all in her brain. “I know. Sleep. I’ll watch over you.” 

“How am I supposed to trust you?” Jungeun drunkingly asked.

“Just let me. I promise, you can trust me.” Sooyoung kissed her cheek softly and then her neck, before moving back up to her soft lips. Her mind going blank whenever their lips connected. 

They were so soft, so hypnotizing. Sooyoung hadn’t felt anything like it.

She lied beside her, allowing the drunk girl to pass out onto the guest bed. She stroked her hair and her cheek until she dozed off in her arms like a newborn baby. And she placed a blanket over her tiny body before sitting in the chair in the corner of the room, knocking out and awaking to the sun shining onto her poor head. The head that carried an extreme hangover. She drank, but not as much as she did at other parties. She looked over to the bed, spotting Jungeun still fast asleep, and Sooyoung smiled. Pleased to see the blonde was okay, safe and sound.

* * *

The rest of the weekend, the woman just thought about Sooyoung. Her scent, her body, her lips. The way she looked down at Jungeun that night, like she was the most fragile person in the entire world. Like if she kissed her too hard she’d break. If she touched her, she’d break. But thinking about Sooyoung caused her to space out during her classes, her mind just plagued with the woman that completely flipped her life upside down within a month. 

Jungeun tiredly walked into her human anatomy class, her body exhausted from her hardcore weekend and staying up so late to study for her quiz today. She sat at a random table towards the back, placing her head in her hands and sighing to herself. She rested her eyes for a bit, hearing the class slowly filling with students. She heard a few people walk by her, moving to the table further to the right of the class. 

But she heard one seat in particular being sat on beside her. She ignored it, however, her eyes burning even as she kept them closed. She heard a book being slammed onto the surface beside her, making her jump quickly with her bloodshot red eyes looking beside her for the culprit. “Oh, hi.” Doyeon said gently, looking at the blonde beside her. Swallowing the jealousy she felt. 

“Um.. hi.” Jungeun replied, rubbing her eyes.

“Long night?” 

“Something like that.” The shorter girl replied, opening her book as the professor stepped into the class.

“I see you’re getting closer with the popular kids. I thought you were more on the shy, nerdy side.” She said, slightly condescending but it flew over Jungeun’s head because of how exhausted she was. 

“More like the popular kids are trying to get closer to me.” Jungeun laughed slightly, watching as the professor wrote something on the board. She minded her business for the most part, ignoring the way Doyeon glanced at her every second or so. 

“This uh... Sooyoung. Do you like her?” She questioned, side-eyeing the woman beside her as she kept her head down, looking in her book. 

Jungeun quickly turned to her. Her eyes showed how anxious she was to have been asked a question like that. Especially from someone she barely knew. Jungeun wasn’t really out.. when it came to her sexuality. So she was always a bit stuck, her heart stopping whenever someone pointed it out or asked questions. “She’s just a friend.” 

Doyeon laughed, sighing deeply and placing her chin in her palm. “I wish I had friends like that.” She sarcastically spoke, but Jungeun ignored it. Focusing on what her professor was beginning to say.

“Yeah…” Jungeun replied quietly, feeling herself growing uncomfortable from the tension between the two of them.

“That Sooyoung… she’s no good.. you know that right?”

“What?” 

“I don’t know. She just has a player reputation. Bringing girls in to get what she wants and then just tossing them to the side like a shortened cigarette…” 

Jungeun cleared her throat. Trying her hardest to not show how much Doyeon’s words bothered her. “Well, she’s just my friend.. so.” 

“Whatever you say.” Doyeon spoke. “You can’t say I never warned you though. Whenever it comes time for you to get tossed to the side too.” 

Jungeun rolled her eyes. “Did you date her?”

“For a year. Yeah.” Doyeon informed the girl beside her. “Didn’t end too well.” 

Jungeun just turned to the brunette, studying her closely as she watched her write a few notes down on a piece of paper. Ignoring Jungeun’s presence at this point. She couldn’t pretend Doyeon’s words didn’t bother her in some way. But she had to focus.. especially in this class. A class she basically excelled in. 

She felt her mind somewhere else the rest of the class, not realizing she moved a bit further away from Doyeon throughout it. The moment class ended, she grabbed her things and left the room quickly. The moment she stepped out, Sooyoung was standing there, waiting for her with a smile. That same smile that made her heart skip every single time, even now. “Hey..” Sooyoung said, when Jungeun barely acknowledged her presence. “No Hi?” 

“I don’t feel like talking to you right now.” Jungeun simply said, turning away.

“Wait Jungeun—“ She chased, before she was stopped by a taller woman, moving in front of her and preventing her from going any further. 

Sooyoung deeply sighed. “What did you say to her?” 

“Nothing that nobody else doesn’t know already.” Doyeon smiled, holding her binder close to her chest. She watched the look of distress on Sooyoung’s face as she watched the blonde quickly disappear out of sight. 

“I hate you. So. _Fucking_. Much.” Sooyoung said, bumping into Doyeon as she chased after the blonde.

Doyeon just scoffed. Watching as Sooyoung chased after a girl that Doyeon didn’t even think was even worth Sooyoung’s time. But truthfully, she was just jealous that Jungeun even had Sooyoung’s time. 

“Come on. You know Professor Kim hatessss late comers.” Her friend said, grabbing on her arm forcefully.

“Right.” Doyeon agreed, before looking down the busy hallway again, and seeing no sign of Sooyoung.

* * *


	2. 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think I wrote too much... 
> 
> **  
>  Tw/ suicide  
> Tw/ terminal illness **
> 
> ****
> 
> Enjoy though ❤️

* * *

Despite Sooyoung’s attempts to speak to Jungeun, she always missed her by an inch. It was clear the blonde was ignoring her, she’d called and texted plenty of times and to no avail. And in public, she avoided her. It seemed the moment she really needed to speak with Jungeun, she was like a ghost. Unable to be seen or reached. It was funny how that was the case now when before it was like all she saw around was Jungeun. Even when she wasn’t trying to.

“Hey kicked puppy.” Heejin said, sitting down beside Sooyoung on the bench as she watched the girls on the court. “I brought you a snack.” 

“I’m fine. Thanks.” Sooyoung declined, her eyes trained on the players. 

Heejin shrugged, opening the bag for herself. “It’s been a week.” 

“I’ve been busy.” 

“With…?” Heejin questioned, getting a glare in response. “Look, you know I just worry about you a lot. You can’t go M.I.A on me whenever you want without a warning or something.” 

Sooyoung exhaled loudly. “I’m practicing for the semi-finals coming up next month.. our coach gave us the bracket.. there’s so many teams. It’ll take months before we even get to the middle of this bracket, and probably not even there.” 

“You have a long season ahead but I believe in you. And so does your team.” Heejin encouraged. “Now— how about you tell me what’s _really_ bothering you.” She eyed Sooyoung carefully, trying to find the change in her features when she heard those words. She turned to Heejin with the softest eyes in the world before laughing to herself, confusing the shorter woman even more.

“It’s just crazy. How I’m so caught up on this girl.” She shook her head in disbelief. “She hasn’t talked to me for an entire week. It’s driving me crazy.” She admitted, leaning back onto the stand behind them. 

“What’d you do?” 

“More like what did Doyeon do.. she must’ve said something to Jungeun. Pissed her off and now she won’t even look at me.” She laughed. “I thought breaking up with her would free me but seems like she still wants some sort of control over me. I mean, she cheated on _me_. Not the other way around.”

“Yeah but she’s a brat that’s like you in some ways, gets what she wants. She did something terrible and she can’t get over it or accept the fact.” Heejin explained. “You can’t keep allowing her to ruin things for you.” 

“You say that like I just allow it to happen. I wasn’t even there when she did whatever the fuck it was she did. But I’ll speak to Jungeun.” 

Heejin patted her shoulder softly before leaving the bag of chex mix onto her duffle bag. “Call me later?” 

“‘Maybe.” They fist bumped each other and Sooyoung watched as Heejin walked out of the gymnasium, leaving the girl on the bench alone. Lisa smiled at her, gesturing her over and passing the ball over to her. Sooyoung caught it, smiling back and standing up to join practice.

* * *

“No class today?” Younghoon questioned, leaning in the doorway of his younger sister’s room. 

“Nope.. not today. I do tomorrow though.. and the day after that.” 

“Do you think you’ll be able to come see me and my band perform this weekend?” He questioned, his eyes full of hope. Jungeun hadn’t even turned around to acknowledge him yet, her face buried deep into her books. That’s what Younghoon admired about his sister. She was always dedicated to whatever it is she did. He was the opposite when it came to school however, and even sports. He liked music more. He played the bass in his band but he was really good at the drums and piano. All things he was good at, but he lost his passion almost entirely long ago. He did this for money now. 

“Not sure. I’m swamped with work this week.. but I’ll let you know.” 

He smiled sadly. “Okay.” He simply replied, nearly leaving the room entirely until she stopped him. Turning around in her chair and calling out to him.

“How does mom and dad feel about this all? The whole band thing..” 

He laughed. “At this point, I think they’re just happy I’m getting off of my ass. They were mad about it though.. as expected. But I’ve been through worse.” 

“Tell me about it..” They both laughed. “I’ll try my best to come okay?” 

“As long as you try, that’s all that matters.” He smiled.

_**//** _

Jungeun walked beside the taller girl as they made their way to a nearby ice cream shop. Jinsoul wasn’t too big on driving everywhere and to be fair she lived pretty close to Jungeun. She stopped by to swoop her up and get ice cream. She noticed she seemed down that week. 

“Sooyoung’s been asking about you.” She suddenly said after they both ordered what they wanted. Jungeun turned away from the girl who paid at the counter. She could hear her cutely thanking the woman behind the register that handed her the ice cream. She joined Jungeun in a booth where the girl purposely avoided her eyes. “She likes you a lot you know.” She added and Jungeun scoffed, grabbing her ice cream from Jinsoul.

“She likes a lot of people.” Jungeun said, and Jinsoul instantly perked up.

“Who?” 

“How should I know? A girl like her.. she can get anyone she wants but she chooses to go after me.. not only that, but I’m probably not even the only person she treats this way.” 

Jinsoul disagreed entirely, shaking her head at the blonde. “You don’t see it do you?” 

“See what?” 

“She likes you. Like… reallyyyy likes you.” The black haired woman laughed. “One thing about Sooyoung is, she falls for people easily. I’ve seen it before, with my own eyes.” 

Jungeun quickly turned to her. “You have? How? Did she like you?” She questioned, and Jinsoul immediately froze.

“W-What? Me? No.” She laughed it off. “Of course not. I’m just one of the people who hears the rambling when she does fall for someone. You’re that person now.” 

“Isn’t that a bit strange? Falling for someone so easily..?” 

“Isn’t it strange to kiss someone you hardly know?” She questioned back, and Jungeun’s face grew red. “Exactly. We don’t always have answers. We just… live in the moment. We’re a bunch of young adults trying to figure out life. It’s not out of the ordinary. We fall for people. We hate people. We lose friends. Gain friends. It’s a never ending cycle.” She spoke truthfully.

“Do you get lost? In the cycle I mean..” 

“Doesn’t everyone?” Jinsoul responded with a sly smile. “Live in the moment. You’ll stress less and smile more.”

“You sound like something straight out of tumblr.” 

Jinsoul shrugged, eating her ice cream across from Jungeun. If Jungeun couldn’t see it, Jinsoul would. She’d been on the other end of Sooyoung’s wandering eyes before. Maybe you had to experience it to truly understand it. Sooyoung was.. lovely. In every single way she was lovely. Cocky, arrogant, a pain in the ass. But still lovely. The night they slept together was something that was never really mentioned again because of Jinsoul. It was a strange night when it happened, and it happened so fast. It was a buildup of things. She’s a cheerleader on the team Sooyoung played for. She was stunning, she was smart, her smile was beautiful, she was shy and she fell victim to Sooyoung’s smile just like everyone else. 

They flirted every now and then, and at some point, Jinsoul noticed Sooyoung had quite a thing for her. Offering to help her study with her work, inviting her over for dinner, asking her out to movies. Staring at her just a little too long sometimes. All of the signs were there, and despite Jinsoul blatantly ignoring them outwardly, she felt the same way.. to some extent. They’d been friends in passing before she joined the cheer squad. They were a tight knit circle actually, so she wasn’t quite sure what it was that made Sooyoung suddenly have an interest in her. They never spoke about that either.

Sooyoung was clingy, and so was Jinsoul. Their relationship wasn’t out of the ordinary to outsiders. She denied, denied, denied, the way she felt about Sooyoung for her own sake. She couldn’t risk ruining such a great friendship. But it all went downhill one night. College parties were the bane of all friendships and relationships. Shit always happened at parties. Drunk college kids and freedom were the worst combinations to exist. She got drunk, Sooyoung got drunk. They sat outside together while the music bled through the windows and the walls of the home. They talked, and they laughed, enjoying their drink under the night sky. And then it happened, their eyes met and for once Jinsoul held Sooyoung’s gaze instead of turning away. 

And when Sooyoung leaned in, she didn’t stop her… god she should have stopped her. But she didn’t, and their lips connected. And Jinsoul _liked_ it, far too much. Sooyoung smirked at her. “Follow me.” Were the words that left the other woman’s mouth, reaching a hand out to help the other woman up. They traveled through the party goers and to somewhere more secluded, and it happened. It all happened so fast. And she enjoyed it. She enjoyed Sooyoung. But she knew it wasn’t something she truly wanted. A relationship, at least not yet.

They didn’t talk about it, they never did. Eventually the tension between them died down, because Sooyoung had a thing with Doyeon. It hurt Jinsoul at first, for a reason unknown, but she eventually got over it. In some strange way, at the time, they were good for each other. And when it all came crashing down, Jinsoul found herself waking up next to the bare woman beside her. And still, they didn’t talk about it. They never did. Sooyoung was broken for some time, she never showed it, but her closest friends knew. They always knew. 

Heejin helped more than Jinsoul could, their friendship was much different than the one she and Sooyoung shared. Their relationship was complicated, but they still were there for each other. It’d taken a while for things to go back to normal, and within months they were back together again. It was a minor situation compared to the one that finally broke the chain between the two. 

Jungeun explained to Jinsoul what Doyeon said to her, and the taller woman laughed in response to such a silly thing. “Doyeon’s a wreck. Sooyoung is a hard person to let go of. You should just ignore her.” Jinsoul advised.

“She sits _beside_ me in my human anatomy class..” 

“Then move away from her, I don’t know. She’s toxic. She was toxic with Sooyoung and she’s toxic now. Meddling into things she doesn’t even know about. Trust me, Sooyoung is _over_ her.” She assured the woman. “You seem unsure of a lot of things.” 

“What do you mean?” 

“I mean, do you like Sooyoung?” She asked and Jungeun shook her head, looking away from the woman. 

“I don’t know.” 

“You don’t know? Or you don’t want to admit it just yet?” 

Jungeun nervously bit the inside of her cheek before turning back to Jinsoul. She inhaled deeply before releasing the air in her lungs. “When I kissed her… it kind of made sense.. somewhere in my intoxicated brain. So yeah, maybe I do like her. But I don’t _know_ her.” 

“Then get to know her. Stop running away from her. She’s a mature girl. When things are wrong she tends to fix them, or at least try… she’s trying here, with you. She likes you a lot Jungeun. Sooyoung’s a romantic but she’s not someone that settles down often.” 

“That’s quite contradicting.” Jungeun pointed out and Jinsoul scoffed in response.

“My point is, she has to really like you to go this far. She’s not a dater. She just likes to flirt, have sex, make friends, mess with girls. She likes cute shit like valentines day and christmas and birthdays and.. anniversaries.” Jinsoul explained, finishing her ice cream and wiping her face with a wet wipe. “She’s a good person, Jungeun. You should meet her halfway.. if you do like her like you claim to.”

* * *

It’d been a few days since that outing with Jinsoul. Jungeun was getting ready for her afternoon class. She’d woken up a bit later than usual so she hadn’t showered earlier. Exy invited her out for lunch after her class so she had to dress somewhat nicely for that too. She wrapped her towel around her body before walking towards the bathroom where she was stopped by her brother. His hand instantly moved up to shield his eyes as he spoke. “My car broke down earlier while I was running some errands for mom.. could you take me over to my friend’s place? We have to practice for tomorrow.” 

Jungeun moved around him. “I’ll have to see, I might not have time.” 

“Well that’s better than just no… Mom said she’s cooking dinner so she can’t do it either.” 

“She can’t just stop for a bit to take you?” Jungeun complained and he shook his head with a shrug. She rolled her eyes and closed the door, turning the shower water on quickly as she removed her hair from the bun she wore.

She was already in the shower soaked by the time she realized she left her phone in her room. She usually played music while she stood in there. It relaxed her. “Shit..” She muttered, wiping the water from her eyes as she stepped out momentarily. She cracked the door open and shouted for her sister. “Yerim-ah!” She yelled out, hearing the younger girl respond from downstairs.

“Yes?!” She yelled back as she sat at the dining table, eating a snack before she went out with some friends. 

“Could you bring me my phone?!” She asked, and the girl politely agreed to do it. She shut the door slightly as she heard Yerim running up the stairs and towards her room down the hall. Her room was the furthest one down the hall, whereas Yerim’s was the first one once you reached the top step. Younghoon’s bedroom was beside the bathroom but he was in the basement at the moment. 

Yerim quickly grabbed Jungeun’s phone, not even catching the fact that she had a missed call that was followed up by a text. She handed it to Jungeun after she knocked and the door was opened quickly. “Thanks Yerim.” She smiled, grabbing the phone and shutting the door.

Yerim quickly returned back downstairs for her snack, passing her father that sat in the chair located in the living room as always. 

“Hm! Food is almost done so I won't have to worry about it for later. Just have to grill the meat and cut up these onions and I should be set.” Her mother spoke to herself, in which Yerim ignored slightly. There was suddenly a knock at the door, followed by a ringing of the doorbell. Yerim just turned to her mother and the woman looked at her, before quickly washing the onion smell from her hand. 

When she opened the door, she was met with a large edible arrangement and a bouquet of flowers. “Um..?” 

“Special delivery!” The man said excitedly, before her saluting her and walking off.

“I’m sorry sir—“ She called out but he’d already walked down to his car. 

Younghoon was on his way back up the stairs when he spotted his mother near the doorway holding what looked like flowers and fruits. “What’s going on?” 

His mother scoffed. “These gifts just showed up for someone. Not sure who ordered these silly things.” 

Younghoon took a closer look, his eyes instantly going wide when he spotted the card on the bouquet. He grabbed it fast before slipping it into his back pocket. “Ah— It must be a gift for me.” He quickly said, smiling and grabbing them from his mother’s hands. “Don’t worry about it, I’ll handle it.” 

“Oh the boy’s finally gotten another girlfriend huh?” His father said from his seat. 

“W-Wait—“

“And we haven’t gotten to meet her yet?!” His mother said excitedly. “Oh she must really like you to be sending you such precious gifts. When do we get to meet her?!”

“It’s… it’s not official yet. We’re just talking right now.” He quickly defended, feeling himself growing nervous at the consistent lying. 

“Aish… she ordered from Sojung’s Arrangements. One of the most expensive bouquet shops on this side of town. Surely she’s making it as if she wants to be official. Right?” 

“Right.” Yerim added teasingly, watching the disapproving look on Younghoons face. He shook his head, placing the bouquet down and the edible arrangement. He checked to make sure there were no other lingering notes that could get Jungeun in extreme trouble. He opened the small card fully now, seeing the note written. He skipped over the writing and read the name.

_Sooyoung_ , the note ended with and he went up the steps waiting for Jungeun to finish showering. 

“Yeah okay this— this can’t be a thing.” She gestured to the boy who sat on her bed in her room.

“You know what else can’t be a thing?” He questioned, standing up and pulling the card from his back pocket. “Your little girlfriend sending gifts to the damn house.” He put the note in her hand.

“W-what? What girlfriend?” 

“Sooyoung. Her name is Sooyoung.” 

She shook her head, opening the note and seeing the name there as well. “S-She’s not my girlfriend…” 

He shrugged. “Whatever she is, she needs to know—. It’s not good Jungeun. Especially if you’re not going to be around to accept these gifts before mom does.” He explained.

“Gifts? What gifts?” 

“She sent flowers and an edible arrangement. Romantic stuff I must say. Quite a gentlewoman.” 

“That’s debatable.” Jungeun sighed, sitting on the bed and reading the note. It instantly made her heart pound and her lips curl up into a smile. Younghoon watched her from the other side of the room. 

“So.. who is she?” 

“You know her name.” 

“No like, who is she, to you?” 

Jungeun avoided the question and Younghoon rolled his eyes. “You know I support you. With whatever it is you’re into. It’s not a big deal.” 

“To mom and dad it is.” 

“I’m not mom and dad.” He quickly said. “I’m your brother. I don’t care who you like. I just want to make sure everything is okay.” 

“She’s….” Jungeun began to explain. “I don’t know. We kind of have a thing… I don’t know what it is. It’s weird.” 

“So you like girls?” 

“Younghoon—“

“I just want to know okay? I’m not judging. I just want to know if this is a serious thing going on here because I’ll protect you. And I'll cover for you, you just have to let me know.” He said sincerely, and she felt her eyes slightly water.

She wasn’t really “out” to anyone fully, other than the obvious people. She especially hid it from her family though, even her siblings because she was afraid of how they’d react to it. But Younghoon was being so supportive right now. He was always that way though, constantly defending her against their parents when needed and such. This was different though. Liking someone that wasn’t socially correct was nearly a death sentence. It was sad, but it was true. “It’s a thing. That’s all I know for now.” She quietly said and he nodded in response. He ruffled her hair and smiled.

“I’d hug you but you’re soaking wet right now with a towel wrapped around you.”

“Right.” She laughed. “Now get out.” 

“I’m going. I’m going.” He walked off. “Love you Jungeun.” 

“Love you too.” She replied before the door was closed shut. She looked down at her phone, finally noticing the missed call and text as she didn’t before because she used her siri to play music. She noticed it was from Sooyoung and so was the unread text.

_Hey, you didn’t pick up when I called. But I hope you enjoy the gifts and the flowers.. I picked them out myself. We should talk? Face to face preferably. Clear up whatever this is between us? We can meet up somewhere._

She immediately called Sooyoung as she got dressed, and the moment she picked up, Jungeun’s heart fluttered uncontrollably. _She missed her voice_. 

_“We’re exchanging gifts now?”_

_“No. Just me.” Sooyoung laughed from her hand, before quickly becoming serious a little after. “I don’t know what I did wrong. But I wanted to apologize to you personally.. I’m not too good on the over the phone situations.”_

_“I have class today.” She said, looking at the time. “In 35 minutes actually.”_

_“Then after. Come over to my place. I’ll text you the address.” Sooyoung smiled._

_“I’ll think about it.” Jungeun said, before hanging up._

_Sooyoung looked down at her phone with disbelief. She’d never been hung up on. “This girl..” She muttered to herself with a smirk as she leaned back into the chair she sat in._

_**//**_

For some reason, Jungeun despised Wednesday’s. It was probably the fact that it was right in the middle of the week. Not late or early in it. Just there. She had taken Jinsoul’s advice, sitting away from the taller woman that glared in her direction once she realized Jungeun had moved. She focused on her work and got all of the information that she could from out of the lesson that day so she could leave early. She knew Doyeon would’ve followed her out otherwise.

Her evening class had been cancelled thankfully.

It was truly like the universe wanted her to go and see Sooyoung. She had no other excuse now as to why she shouldn’t go. She pulled out her phone and went over the messages that Sooyoung had sent. When she looked up, Jennie was passing by her, giving a gentle smile as she went about her day. Jungeun smiled back before putting her phone back in her pocket.

_**//** _

The moment she pulled up, her heart fell to her ass. Not just because she was seeing Sooyoung soon, but because of how beautiful this house was. It was huge, the tan exterior and the beautiful oval shaped window panes with the two garages. She walked up to the front door, ringing the doorbell that she could hear from even outside of the house. She waited patiently for Sooyoung to open the door, and her heart stopped at the sight. She could see the surprise on Sooyoung’s face. “Jungeun?” She questioned, drying her hair with the towel in her hand. “Come in.” She said cutely, moving aside.

But Jungeun found it hard to breathe at the sight of Sooyoung just wearing shorts and a sports bra. Her collarbones were… really attractive, and her skin somehow seemed to glow even more now than ever. Thankfully the interior of Sooyoung’s home distracted her after some time. The floors were a shiny marble, and the walls were a bright white with pictures hanging off the walls all around. It was quite warm inside, despite the already warm weather. 

“Sorry about the temperature in here.. I get cold easily.” She explained, knowing that was something she had to announce whenever she had a new guest. “Um, could you give me a second?” 

Jungeun turned back to her and instantly regretted it. She cleared her throat and quickly moved her eyes back up to Sooyoung’s face. The image of her toned abs forever burned in her mind now. “Yeah of course.” 

“Thanks. The living room is just through there.” She pointed out before running up the steps. 

Jungeun made her way through the large front area, finding the living room after she looked at a few of the pictures on the walls. She sat onto the white sofa where the tv was on, a basketball game showcased on the tv. The closer she looked the more she realized it was actually one of Sooyoung’s games. She could hear the sound of footsteps and before she could even blink Sooyoung was back in front of her again. Wearing a cute blue and pink tye dye shirt that was large enough to swallow the shorts she wore. Her hair was still a little wet but it was drying up quickly. 

“Sorry.. I wasn’t expecting company so—“

“So you open your front door with a sports bra?” Jungeun teased and Sooyoung looked away.

“A sports bra isn’t a big deal. It’s only a big deal if you find the other person attractive.” She quickly retaliated, winking in Jungeun’s direction. 

The blonde moved away from her slightly. “Would you like something to drink? Beer, soda, water?” 

“Water would be perfectly fine.” Jungeun responded, sitting comfortably now. She waited patiently for Sooyoung to return and when she did they exchanged a tiny smile at each other. Sooyoung sat closer this time after handing her the glass of water. The scent of the soap she used wafting over to her and making her dizzy from how good it smelt. “How were your classes?” She cutely asked, sitting back and resting her hands in her lap. 

“I only had one today. The other one got cancelled so.” She explained, taking a few sips and placing the glass onto the cup holder. “Do you always watch your games?” She questioned, pointing out the video still playing on the flatscreen. 

“Huh? No!” She laughed. “I’m cocky.. but not that cocky. I usually rewatch games to find flaws.. see where I can tighten up a few things and fix a few errors for the next game.” 

“That’s smart.” Jungeun agreed, watching the game on the screen. “When is your next game anyway?” 

“Well the semi-finals start soon, but we have a friendly game before that in about a week.” 

“You find errors in games to go against friendlies?”

“I don’t go easy on people because they’re a friendly team. Competition is competition. We’re all in it for the same thing. So yes. I find errors in everything that I do and I fix it.” 

“Huh.. never saw you as the type.”

“Well. To be fair you’ve never actually sat down and talked to me about this kind of thing so.” She smiled softly and Jungeun shrugged nonchalantly. Sooyoung couldn’t stop herself from smiling. She was smitten with Jungeun. Her lips were an alluring pink, and she wore a pink shirt to match it with the most perfect blue jeans to accentuate it. Her side profile was perfect, she was perfect. The blonde hair definitely did wonders. 

Jungeun could feel eyes on her, but she couldn’t help to glance over briefly before shyly turning back away. “Shameless.” She simply said, breaking the silence they shared.

Sooyoung laughed. “What? You look good..” She admitted. 

Jungeun shook her head and chuckled lightly. Shyly tucking her hair behind her ear. Sooyoung’s voice was quickly becoming one of her favorite sounds, and her smile was definitely becoming her favorite thing to see. Not to mention how good she always looked and how nice she smelled. “So.. what did she say to you?” 

“What?” 

“Doyeon. What’d she say?” 

Jungeun hesitated for a bit. But Sooyoung’s voice was calm. She wasn’t trying to start anything. She just genuinely wanted to know, so she could clear up any misunderstandings. She wanted to be straightforward with Jungeun. She really liked this girl and she didn’t need a bunch of rumors and gossip fucking that up for her.

Jungeun remembered what Jinsoul had said to her. About how Sooyoung operated when she liked someone. But overall, she was really a caring person, and despite how confident she could be, her intimidating aura was actually just a shell of who she was. She was kind, gentle, and she had the softest eyes. The blonde woman tried her hardest not to get distracted by those things. It was almost impossible for her to look at Sooyoung without becoming insanely flustered and making a fool of herself. So she avoided her eyes as much as she could. But she always found herself melting into them eventually. 

“She said things didn’t end well between you two.. that you’re no good..” 

“No good?” 

“You’re a player.” She spat out, but quickly moved to fix her sentence. “Is what she said. That’s what she said.” 

“Do you believe her?” Sooyoung questioned, searching for her eyes again.

“I...I don’t know… to be quite fair. I don’t know. I don’t know much about you to be honest. I know you’re an amazing basketball player, rich, attractive, smart, and popular.” 

“You find me attractive?” Sooyoung winked and Jungeun rolled her eyes.

“The fact that you pointed that out of all things I said.” She shook her head, hearing a small giggle coming from Sooyoung. “But yeah.. I do.” 

“Look— I’m going to be honest with you here so you don’t get misinformed again.” She moved to sit on the table, so she was directly looking at Jungeun ahead of her. “I’m not a player. I’ve never led anyone on. Yeah I flirt here and there, but I’m no monster. I’ve had sex a few times.. hookups happen often in college. But Jungeun— I’m not a player. When I like someone, when I want someone, they’re all I’m looking at. Don’t believe Doyeon.” 

She nodded in response. _God she looked too good_. She got her focus back, her eyes falling on the cross necklace that was pressed against Sooyoung’s neck. “So what happened? Between you and…” She trailed off lightly and Sooyoung sighed. 

“She cheated on me with a close friend of mine actually.” She shrugged. She really was over her. Yeah it was fucking terrible what happened, but she learned to not dwell on it. She was past the heartbreak phase and now she just wanted Doyeon out of her life. 

“S-She cheated… on _you_ with your close friend?” The girl questioned. She couldn’t believe what she just heard. How could anyone cheat on Sooyoung. She had basically everything you’d ever want in someone. Or maybe that was just her being biased.. 

“Ex close friend.” Sooyoung corrected. “But yeah. Anyways, she’s just.. not a good person, and she doesn’t like the idea of me moving on. I just wish she’d leave me alone ya know?” 

Jungeun agreed completely. “But yeah. I’m no player Jungeun, and yeah, I get if you’re a bit weary about me. But I won’t hurt you.” 

“Famous last words.” She laughed and Sooyoung laughed too, but her face immediately became serious again.

“No I’m serious. I want to get to know you. More about you.” She winked, smiling hard when Jungeun rolled her eyes once again. She liked a lot of things about Jungeun. Her mannerisms we’re definitely a top favorite of hers. The way she spoke with not just her hands but expressed her words with the movement of her eyebrows. The way she rolled her eyes constantly and whenever she smiled she felt the need to cover such a beautiful sight. How cute she looked whenever she was concentrating or really into something she was speaking about. 

But not only that, but the girl was beautiful. Pretty doe eyes and a perfect facial structure. A cute button nose and pouty lips with smooth pale skin. The collarbones of a goddess and the body of some model from a magazine. She was stunning, even when she was wearing the most casual outfit. Not to mention how soft her skin was, Sooyoung had the luxury of being able to feel it. To feel those perfect lips against hers and feel Jungeun’s timid frame beneath her as she pulled her in to kiss her deeper with want and need. She blinked a few times, snapping herself out of that image. 

Her eyes landed right back onto Jungeun’s lips after the memory came rushing back to her. “So, I have something to ask about…” 

Jungeun raised an eyebrow in response as she waited for Sooyoung to continue. “That kiss… what was that all about?” 

Jungeun’s face instantly became hot as her eyes moved around anxiously. Avoiding the sight of Sooyoung’s pretty hands where the obvious diamond rings resided. “I um.. yeah, about that— I honestly don’t know.. I mean, I enjoyed it. I was just drunk and I wasn’t thinking straight. I’m sorry if I confused you or—“

“Do you want to kiss me now?” Sooyoung asked, making Jungeun’s jaw go slack with the question. She seemed frozen upon the request, and it wasn’t because she didn’t want to. It was just… not something she was thinking about doing. I mean, yeah, the thought of Sooyoung’s soft lips on hers wasn’t really something she could forget, but she tried to, for the sake of her sanity. “You know— while you’re sober?” 

“I um…” 

“You can say no.” Sooyoung assured her and Jungeun shook her head.

“Yeah. I do want to kiss you.” She responded, and her heart flipped when she saw Sooyoung scooting forward now. Her mouth went dry and she instinctively licked her lips at the sight of the red haired woman eyeing her carefully. 

“Good. Because I haven’t stopped thinking about it.” She admitted, slowly leaning in as her hands gently caressed Jungeun’s petite face. Jungeun could quite literally melt from the way Sooyoung’s eyes looked at her in that moment. And to be fair, she was noticing a lot more now in this state. Sober, and lighting on them both.. deadly combo in that moment. Just before Sooyoung kissed her, she felt her hand gently resting on the nape of her neck, softly pulling her in and pressing her lips against hers. She felt her body go limp as she quite literally melted into Sooyoung’s kiss. 

It was like her mind had gone blank the moment Sooyoung slightly tilted her head, her soft lips on her own, moving like an expert of some sort. It took a moment for Jungeun to reciprocate it, but Sooyoung didn’t mind. She knew her effect on the other girl. 

Jungeun nearly fainted when she felt Sooyoung smiling into the kiss, her soul nearly floating from her physical body. But Sooyoung somehow kept her grounded, despite how overwhelmed she was by how good of a kisser she was. How’d she go this long without ever having a kiss like this in her life? It was unbelievable. Her nose brushed against Sooyoung’s just as she pulled away, her eyes opened slowly, confused as to why Sooyoung stopped. But the girl was just getting comfier, sitting beside her now instead. She smiled, her eyes getting low as she immediately dove back in, missing the sweet taste of Jungeun’s lips already. Jungeun felt her soft hand make it’s way up her shirt and gently grip at the skin just above her waist.

Her skin was soft underneath the wandering fingertips of Sooyoung. She couldn’t get enough and she couldn’t help but feel exhilarated by the control she had in the situation. Sooyoung also had a thing for kissing. It was something about how intense it could get, how needy someone could get just from the way she moved her lips against theirs. How her tongue worked against theirs. The show of dominance and want. She slowly initiated tongue, and Jungeun didn’t hesitate. She opened her mouth, welcoming the woman in with no hesitation, and before she knew it, she was leaning back on the sofa. And Sooyoung was above her.

She was still going slow, not overstepping just like that night at the party. Jungeun didn’t mind, Sooyoung’s lips, Sooyoung’s tongue, it was so intoxicating. She felt lightheaded, she couldn’t think straight. It was all so crazy. 

It ended the moment Jungeun let out a whimper however. Both of their eyes opening and the sight of Jungeun’s flushed cheeks and wide eyes making Sooyoung smile down at her. “Don’t worry.. it happens.” She smiled, leaning beside her and playing with her hair. Jungeun covered her face with her hands, feeling not just her face heating up but the rest of her body. 

“Sorry I— I don’t know why I made that sound..” 

“Because you liked it.” Sooyoung simply said. “Like I said, It happens. It’s normal. Trust me.” She winked, still gently playing with the blonde locks. 

Jungeun cleared her throat before slightly sitting up. She looked over at Sooyoung, hesitating to speak as the older girl sat up fully now. “W-What… Sooyoung are we a thing?” She questioned and she felt her body go numb at the sight of hope in Sooyoung’s doe eyes. 

“Would you like to be a thing?” 

“Well… you’ve kissed me rather intimately twice now… I think that qualifies as a thing..” 

Sooyoung laughed. “Umm.. people kiss all of the time. Doesn’t mean they’re a thing.. but in this case—“ She smiled, jokingly procrastinating. “I suppose we’re a thing. Not an official one.. but we’re getting somewhere.” 

Jungeun nodded agreeingly. “Should I be worried? About Doyeon?” She questioned timidly.

“What? No. Trust me. I won’t let her do a thing to you. Neither will my friends.” 

“Okay…” 

“I’ll be out of the state this weekend. But how about we have dinner here next weekend?” She questioned, inching closer to Jungeun. She came to learn that she really enjoyed being in Jungeun’s physical presence. Just being that close to her set her body on her fire and made her mind run 100 miles per hour. “I’ll cook again.” 

“You seem to have a thing for cooking rather than going to restaurants huh?” 

Sooyoung shrugged, standing up. “Homemade dinners are more romantic.” She smiled. “Come with me. I’ll show you around the rest of the house.” 

_**//** _

Jungeun was amazed by what she was seeing. Sooyoung’s house was particularly big for someone living alone. But she explained that her brother and friends usually would come and stay the night to fill up the empty rooms. She wasn’t always alone here, and truthfully she was surprised Heejin hadn’t stopped by. There were 4 bathrooms in the home. One in the master bedroom, one in the hallway, and 2 more downstairs. She had a swimming pool as expected, a fancy kitchen complimented by a breathtaking dining room. But her favorite room of all was Sooyoung’s bedroom.

She had mirrors on the ceiling and cute glowing star stickers around the room. It was quite dark in there and she had a remote controlled led light system. Her bathroom was full marble with a bathtub that had water jets. The shower had stone walls inside of it, and the carpet beneath her feet felt amazing. 

Not to mention the entertainment room she had where there were arcade games and such. She didn’t have a basement however, but there was no need for one. “Sooyoung this place is beautiful.” She complimented, putting on her shoes. 

“Thanks.. you’re free to stop by whenever.” She smiled. “Preferably with a swimsuit one of these days.” 

“Your brain is…” She sighed playfully. 

“Imaginative?” She winked. “I’m just saying I think you’d look good in one.” Her compliments flustering the girl in front of her.

“I’ll keep that in mind.” She smiled, looking up at Sooyoung who stood and watched her. 

“So you’ll come back for dinner?” 

“I’ll have to see—“

“Clear your schedule. Make time for me.” 

“And if I don’t?” Jungeun tested, flipping her hair to one side and feeling her knees go weak at the sight of Sooyoung smirking and eyeing her down. 

“Then… I’ll just have to… tickle you!” She said, and Jungeun immediately went into defense mode when Sooyoung started tickling her. Leaving her a giggling mess on the floor as her face turned red from laughing so damn much. The sound of Sooyoung’s laugh was infectious, and if anything it made her laugh even more than she already was. Jungeun begged the girl to stop and it took her awhile before she actually gave into her pleading. She helped the panting girl off of the floor. “Hm. Ticklish. I’ll add that to my list.” 

“List of what?” 

“My mental list of things about you.” She jokingly said. 

“You’re a strange human.” 

“And yet you’re in _my_ house letting me makeout with you on _my_ couch.” Sooyoung mentioned with her arms crossed, watching as Jungeun cowered away from her words. 

“Are you always this annoying..?” 

“Yes.”

* * *

“It’s been like two weeks now and my professor is still stuck on the nervous system subject.” Heejin complained as she watched Sooyoung get dressed. “I mean— I’m sure there’s other more interesting parts of the body we could be talking about.” 

“Heejin, the nervous system is one of the most important parts of anatomy. Of course you’re still on the subject. Just tough it out. It’ll be over before you know it.” She tried to relax the girl behind her as she looked at herself in the mirror. She wore a low white blouse with some jeans, and her hair was combed more towards the back with a cute black headband on. 

“Are you nervous? About the semi-finals this weekend?” Heejin asked her. 

“Nerves don’t kick in until it’s game day.” She admitted. “Besides, I have an amazing time with me. It doesn’t get too tough until the 3rd round.” 

Heejin sat up and watched the girl spray herself with perfume and fix her hair for the 50th time. “If you keep messing with your hair, it’s going to fall out. That’ll really scare her once she sees how big your head is.” Heejin laughed when Sooyoung gave her 2 middle fingers in response. 

“I have extreme confidence knowing I’d still look good even bald.” 

“Yeah you’d look good. To someone who likes hard boiled eggs maybe.” She teased, laughing the moment Sooyoung ran over to her to playfully hit her.

_**//** _

“So when do I get to meet her?” Younghoon asked as his sister hogged the bathroom to get ready for dinner at Sooyoung’s.

“Hmm never.” She smiled, putting on light makeup and fixing her hair. “Besides, she’s not into guys.” 

He laughed, because that was obvious. “I just want to see the girl that has my sister actually dressing up for once.” He noticed the glare through the mirror immediately. 

“We’re a thing.” She replied, checking her eyebrows and her hair. 

“What?” 

“Sooyoung and I… we’re… a thing.” 

“What the fuck is a thing? A thing could be anything. Friends with benefits, bestfriends, friends, girlfriends. Be specific.” 

She turned to him fully now. “I don’t know, okay? We’re just.. there’s something there. We have something there.. and we’re both interested in pursuing it.” 

“Well shit. Look at that. My sister is growing up.” He smiled. “Don’t worry about mom and dad. I’ll just tell them you’re with friends studying for an upcoming test.” 

“Yeah let me know how that pitiful excuse works out for you.” She said sarcastically.

“Well do you have a better idea?” 

“No.” 

“Then shut up.” 

She wore a cute oversized yellow sweater with a pair of light blue jeans to go along with it. Jungeun turned to him after finishing her makeup. He smiled in disbelief. “Wow. You look amazing.” He complimented. “Now, go show her what you’re worth huh?” 

“I’m worth a lot.” Jungeun responded confidently, and he nodded in agreement.

“You are. Don’t forget that.” He smiled, before pulling something from behind his back. “Also—“ He gave her a look that said, _Get your girlfriend under control_. He pulled out yet another bouquet of flowers that were sent to the home for Jungeun, and the girl laughed loudly.

* * *

Heejin had been long gone by the time Jungeun showed up. She opened the door after she quickly prepared the table for the other woman. Smiling brightly at the sight of Jungeun standing there cutely with her oversized sweater on. A part of it leaning sexily off her shoulder. Jungeun had to hide how flustered she was at Sooyoung’s obvious gawking. “... Can I come in?” 

Sooyoung quickly blinked. “Oh?! Yeah. Yeah. Of course.” She reached out for Jungeun’s hand gently and guided her inside. She was met with the smell of food that was clearly well seasoned, and the sound of soft music filling the home. The lights were slightly dimmed as Sooyoung just softly smiled at her with the sweetest look in her eyes. Not to mention how good she looked in that outfit. She’d also never seen her hair the way it was. It was very different from what she was used to. 

“You look really good.” Jungeun complimented as well, noticing Sooyoung was too jittery to say anything else to her. 

“Me? Yeah. Yeah. But you, you are so beautiful.” She finally said, kissing her softly before backing away sighing with content. “Come. I cooked something really good for us.” 

“I can tell. It smells amazing in here..” She followed, allowing herself to be pulled towards the dining room. Sooyoung’s hands were unrealistically soft. And the slightest movements caused her scent to hit Jungeun overwhelmingly. Was it wrong that she just wanted to sit beside her and let her wrap her arms around her? So she could bask in the smell of Sooyoung’s perfume. 

“Jungeun?” She heard Sooyoung call out from her seat at the table. The girl was completely in a daze as she thought about something so simple and yet so pleasing to her heart. “You okay?” The taller woman laughed cutely, eyeing her to make sure she was okay. 

Jungeun nodded, fixing her hair and taking a seat at the spot that was close to the red head. “Sorry just, got lost for a second there. This food looks amazing Sooyoung.” 

“It tastes amazing too. I tried this seasoning that Heejin suggested for the meat. The rice balls are a personal favorite of mine though.” She smiled, moving to put some food onto her plate. Jungeun followed suit, trying the meat that Sooyoung was talking about. Her eyes instantly widened at the taste of it. She’d never had something so good. Even her mother didn’t cook it this well, or maybe that was just her brain either convincing her it wasn’t too great or she was just tired of it all together. It was nice eating something that someone else cooked.

“Sooyoung this is amazing.” She said, covering her mouth as she chewed and feeling her stomach flip at the sight of Sooyoung’s proud smile. 

“Thank you. I prepared it with love.” She laughed. “It’s a special seasoning.” 

Jungeun laughed as well. “Wish my mom would do that too.” 

“I’ll send it over in a gift box for you.” She winked, and Jungeun perked up at the word ‘gift’. Sooyoung hadn’t noticed however, enjoying her food and pouring Jungeun a glass of wine and one for herself. 

“About the gifts Sooyoung—“

She watched as Sooyoung’s head instantly perked up. “What? You don’t like them? Because I can stop if you’d like, or buy you something else—“ She immediately stopped rambling when she felt a soft hand placed on hers. 

“Sooyoung… I love the gifts. But.. you can’t have them show up at my place.. my parents and—“

“Oh.” Sooyoung sadly said, her face dropping. “They don’t know..?” 

She nodded, looking away ashamed. She wished her parents would just accept her as she is. But she knew that day would never come. It was a horrible feeling, being closeted. It was suffocating and overwhelmingly frightening. Just the mere thought of her parents finding out about her sent her into a panic sometimes. But not this time, not with Sooyoung’s soft eyes looking over at her with full understanding. She held Jungeun’s hand in hers. “Okay. No more gifts to your house.” She agreed. “But.. I can bring you gifts on campus…” 

“Sooyoung…” Jungeun eyed her.

“Look— I want to take care of you. You deserve it.” She simply said. “You’re smart, you’re funny. I mean not funnier than me… but! Funny. You’re _beautiful_.. not to mention a good kisser.” She winked and Jungeun blushed brightly. 

“I appreciate that Sooyoung.. really I do. Thank you.” She shyly thanked. 

They finished their food, laughing and joking, talking about their classes and such. Sooyoung was excited to see Jungeun actually wanted to know about basketball. Not many people cared to ask her about it outside of her close friends and her brother. So it was nice to have someone else doing it. 

“I’ve only been ejected from a game twice. One was a fight the other is because I’m a hothead when I’m competitive. Got into it with a referee..” Jungeun laughed as she sat at the other end of the sofa. “But other than that, no. I’ve had to break up a few fights on the court but that's about it.” 

“A hothead huh?” Jungeun teased, and she was a bit ashamed at how attractive she found that. The thought of Sooyoung fighting was also quite endearing. She didn’t see her as much of a fighter. She seemed to care too much about her face to be getting into altercations. 

“Sometimes.” She smiled.

“So, why do you want to be a doctor?” Sooyoung questioned, giving Jungeun her full attention. 

_Don’t look at me like that.. it makes it hard to think._ She thought, clearing her throat. “Well I originally wanted to work with dead people, overtime my parents kept swaying me more towards people that are alive and in need of help.. I suppose it isn’t a bad career. Just draining.” Sooyoung agreed wholeheartedly. “Why neuroscience?” 

Sooyoung cracked her knuckles and sat up fully now, and Jungeun was honestly impressed by her perfect posture. “Well, my parents also wanted me to become a doctor. If not a doctor, my brother said I could become an idol.” She laughed at that one. “But I thought, if I’m going to go into a medical field, I want an interesting field. Neuroscience is cool. Learning about the brain and how it operates is actually very interesting. So complex.” 

Jungeun couldn’t help but notice she was smiling the entire time as Sooyoung spoke. She explained everything so well when she spoke, her voice was melodious. And not to mention how nice it was to be able to stare at her outside of just taking glimpses at her without shame. Not to mention she couldn’t even look at her anymore without thinking about how good of a kisser she is. How gentle she was and how good her lips felt. It was all she could think about whenever they weren’t together. They pretty much talked everyday and the days they didn’t is when they’d see each other on campus. And… that was pretty often. 

She came to realize she looked forward to seeing the other woman on campus. Sometimes they didn’t talk, just shared glances from their respective friend groups. Every once in a while she’d find herself against a wall being teased by Sooyoung, and before she’d leave she’d kiss her quickly on the lips before winking and telling her to have a good day. 

“Science.. is complex.” 

“Anything could be complex if you really dissect it.” Sooyoung responded and Jungeun gave her a questioning look. “You’re complex.” 

Jungeun turned back to the girl beside her. “Me?” 

“Yeah. You.” She exhaled lightly. “You’re a tough shell to crack. But you let me in.. it’s been almost 2 months now and you… why?” 

“I’m not understanding what you’re asking Sooyoung..” 

She scooted closer to the girl, making it nearly impossible for Jungeun to breathe with her that close. “Why are you letting me in?” She questioned. “I mean, for the entire first month of me trying to get to know you, you were so damn stubborn. You didn’t let me even try, you didn’t even try and just.. why now? I mean this past month has been great don’t get me wrong I just—“

She felt a soft finger on her lips, telling her to shut up so the blonde woman could speak now. “You’re rambling.” She pointed out, tilting her head cutely. “To be fair.. I don’t know why. It just.. feels good. It feels right.. when I’m with you, I’ve noticed I smile more.. I laugh more.. it’s just _more_. And despite your disgustingly, annoying, cocky personality… I like you.. I think you’re really sweet.” 

Sooyoung smiled even more now, holding her hand and smiling at the way their fingers intertwined. “I am… disgustingly cocky… and annoying.” Jungeun nodded in agreement. “But I can be really sweet.. and I’m a good kisser… andddd I’m smart, and a basketball player. I have a nice house that you’re free to visit any time. And oh— I like you, I think you’re sweeter than sweet.” She kissed her cutely, fixing her hair for her. 

She could get used to that. Kissing Sooyoung whenever.. although she was still too shy to do it. Sooyoung was usually the one initiating the kisses. She didn’t mind it either way, as long as she got to feel those lips on hers every once in a while. “So we’re a thing?” 

“Just a thing?” Sooyoung tempted. “Or do you want it to be an _official_ thing?” She questioned, smiling at the shy blonde. 

“Are you asking me to be your girlfriend?” 

“Well… would you like to be my girlfriend?” 

“Would you like me to like to be your girlfriend?” 

“Jungeun…” Sooyoung whined cutely, making Jungeun smile and pull her in for a kiss. She didn’t know where she found the courage to do it, but she was sure it had to do with how beautiful and captivating her eyes were in that moment. Her hands were placed gently on Sooyoung’s shoulders as she slightly hovered over her to reciprocate the kiss that the woman below her initiated. 

“Yes. We’re an _official_ thing now.” She smiled, her smile somehow growing even brighter when she saw how excited Sooyoung got after her answer. Smiling cutely and bombarding her with kisses everywhere, causing Jungeun to burst out into a fit of laughter as she allowed her to do it. 

_**//** _

They lied on the sofa shortly after their talk, watching an action movie that Sooyoung really enjoyed. She rested her head in Jungeun’s lap the entire time, her body overlapping atop Jungeun’s legs. She didn’t mind though. Sooyoung wasn’t exactly a heavy person. If anything it was comforting having her there. Her body heat kept her warm and fulfilled as she gently played with her hair as they watched a movie together. It was comforting being with someone who didn’t feel the need to speak every second. They truly did just enjoy each other’s presence in that moment. 

The movie had finished now and Sooyoung hadn’t even moved. She just lay there in silence watching the credits roll. “I uh— I should probably go..” Jungeun announced, sitting up just a bit. She watched as Sooyoung’s head perked up and gave her a look of disapproval. 

“Just stay the night..” She whined, holding Jungeun in place so she didn’t get up. 

“Unfortunately I can’t… plus I have class tomorrow.” 

“Remind me not to plan a date the night before school next time.” She giggled, sitting up and stretching. “Fine. I’ll let you go. But next time, you’re staying the night.” 

“Is this your strange way of saying you want to sleep with me?” 

“Yes.” She replied quickly. “Well no— yes! But not that way. I’d like to sleep with you. Just, sleep. Eyes closed, heads on pillows. Comfy blankets. Sleep.” She quickly corrected so Jungeun didn’t get the wrong idea. 

“I’ll keep that in mind.” She teased, putting on her shoes. 

“Call me when you get home okay?” Sooyoung asked calmly, her thumb running along Jungeun’s bottom lip. “Wanna make sure you’re safe.” 

“Will do.” She agreed, her heart racing extremely fast when Sooyoung leaned down to kiss her. She was intoxicated by those simple kisses, leaving her feeling like she’d downed far too much alcohol when in reality it was just the way Sooyoung’s lips felt. The softest lips she’d ever had on her own with the sweetest most addicting taste. She didn’t want it to ever stop, but if she planned on living to see the next day and kiss Sooyoung again, she had to back away for air. “Bye Sooyoung.” She said softly, stepping away from the woman and running down to her car. She had to get home before her parents started calling her and harassing her for being out so late. 

Sooyoung pressed her fingers against her own lips, her brain still trying to process everything that happened that night and also burning the feeling of Jungeun’s lips into her mind and soul. She wished she could just keep her there and kiss her all night. She never seemed to get tired of it. 

_Bye Jungeun._ Was all she managed to think about, because the kiss left her quite literally speechless.

_**//** _

When Jungeun arrived home that night, her brother was sitting on the front porch. A cigarette in between his fingers and a puff of smoke being blown from his lips. The moment he saw Jungeun pull into the driveway, he put the cigarette out and tucked it behind his ear, standing up and walking down to her. “You arrived just in time. Mom and Dad are on their way back actually.” He explained. “How was it?” 

He watched her walk by him with a smile on his face and he smiled to himself. “That smile tells me everything I need to know.” He shut the door behind them, locking it. “Did you finally tie the knot?”

“A knot? What knot?” She heard Yerim ask, walking from the living room with popcorn in her hand. “Jungeun has a boyfriend?” 

Her two older siblings looked at each other before Younghoon turned back to Yerim. “No. There is no knot. I was just teasing her.” He explained. “Now finish that popcorn and get in bed. Mom and Dad are going to be here any second now.”

“Damn it. I didn’t even do my homework yet!” She said, shoving popcorn into her mouth and running to the kitchen.

“Chop chop!” He yelled, watching as she ran by her siblings and up the stairs.

“Night Jungeun!” She yelled down the stairs. 

They both laughed once they made eye contact again. And he laughed even more when he noticed Jungeun roll her eyes at him and walk to the kitchen. “Yes.” She simply said and he jumped excitedly.

“About fucking time.” He said, following her as she grabbed something to drink from the fridge. “Never thought I’d see the day. Is she hot?” 

“Younghoon..”

“Just asking. I mean, everyone with the name Sooyoung is very attractive from my personal experience.” He added. 

“She’s very beautiful.” She finally said, smiling to herself.

He noticed the smile on her face, and shook his head. “Ew.” He said, but still smiling at her. He was happy for her. The last time she even mentioned a relationship was when she was dating some guy that he nearly beat the shit out of. “Happy for you kid.” 

“You’re literally only 2 years older than me.” She said disapprovingly. 

“2 years of more knowledge than you have.” He said, just as the front door opened. He quickly grabbed the cigarette from behind his ear and tucked it into his back pocket, fixing his hair in the process. Jungeun also straightened up a bit, her heart dropping when she heard her parents speaking. 

They noticed the kitchen light was on and walked towards it. Running into their two kids. “Well, this is a pleasant surprise.” Her mother said, putting her jacket down onto the kitchen chair. “What are you two doing up?” She questioned.

“Oh I was just… I just got back from band practice.” He clarified, ignoring the disgruntled look on her face.

“And you?” She questioned, noticing the makeup on Jungeun’s face. 

“I was over a friend’s house.” 

“A friend? What friend? You have friends?” She asked, and Younghoon cleared his throat.

“She went to study with a friend for her upcoming exams. I think you should be a little easy on her. She’s been working hard.” Her brother defended quickly.

“Hm.” They heard the older woman clear her throat. “And you, how’s the girlfriend coming along? When do we get to meet her?” 

“Oh she’s not my girlfriend.” He clarified for the 15th time. “Just a good friend.” 

“Huh… well, I’ll be getting ready for bed now. Goodnight you two.” She said, grabbing her husband’s hand and making him follow her upstairs. 

The two siblings just looked at each other, shaking their heads in unison.

* * *

“I definitely fucked up that exam.” Heejin complained, grabbing Sooyoung’s sandwich and taking a bite for herself. The taller woman lowered the book she held and side eyed her. “I mean, I thought I studied well enough and then I got into that damn exam room, saw the test, and my brain just.. went blank!” 

“It happens to a lot of us.” Jinsoul said, clicking her pen over and over again. “I used to be the same way, it’s even worse when you cram right before the test though. Sooyoung knows all about it.” She teased, seeing Sooyoung give a disapproving glare in her direction. Which in turn made her giggle to herself. 

“So how is it, with your new girlfriend?” Heejin suddenly asked, catching Jinsoul’s attention. She looked up at Sooyoung, waiting for her response.

“It’s um, it’s great. She’s great. You guys should meet her soon.. you know; one on one.” She suggested, placing her book into her lap. Jinsoul couldn’t help but feel a small twinge in her heart at the way Sooyoung smiled. She was happy; and Jinsoul was happy for her, she was. But she couldn’t deny that it hurt a bit.

“Jungeun? Is it?” 

“Yeah. Jungeun.” She smiled.

“I suppose that chasing paid off in the end.” Jinsoul said, still forcing a smile on her face. She grabbed her things and placed them into her bag. “I have a class in about 5 minutes. I’ll catch you guys later?” 

“Yeah for sure.” Sooyoung smiled, standing up to hug Jinsoul. 

She made eye contact with Heejin as she hugged Sooyoung back. And the younger girl tilted her head in her direction, watching as Jinsoul let her go and smiled again before walking off. Sooyoung sat back beside Heejin in the bean bag chair, grabbing her book again. “So when do I officially get to meet her?” Heejin questioned. “The _girlfriend_.” She playfully said. 

“Umm I’m not sure. She’s not too big on people to be fair. But I think she’d like you both.” 

“Well, she already seems to like Jinsoul.” She said nonchalantly, and Sooyoung slowly lowered her book.

“What? How?” 

“Wait, you didn’t know?” Heejin quickly responded, feeling her eyes go wide and her heart drop. Had she said something that she wasn’t supposed to say?

“No. She didn’t even tell me. Well, Jinsoul hardly speaks to me these days.” 

“Well you’re a busy person. It’s hard for me to even get a hold of you sometimes.” She said, instantly stopping Sooyoung from speaking again. “But I get it. You’re juggling basketball, school, exams and now a girlfriend. I’m not taking it to heart.” 

“Jungeun didn’t tell me either..” Sooyoung mentioned. “Well, I’m glad they’re getting along.” She stood up, grabbing her things. 

“Wait where are you going?” 

“To check on my girlfriend.” Sooyoung smiled. “I’ll text you for lunch later?”

“Yeah, cool.” Heejin responded, sinking deeper into the bean bag chair. 

_**//** _

Jungeun hadn’t been paying attention as she walked into her human anatomy class, going straight towards the back of the class to see the new cadaver they’d be working on that day. Sooyoung followed right behind her, wrapping her arms around the blonde, feeling her slightly jump into the arms that held her securely. But she instantly relaxed when she felt soft kisses against her neck. “It’s just me… and your dead buddy friend right here.. god that smell—“

“I still haven’t gotten used to it.” Jungeun said, turning around and noticing the outfit Sooyoung was wearing. “Hey my little lumberjack.” She said cutely, referring to the plaid shirt Sooyoung wore that day. 

Sooyoung kissed her softly. “Am I a cute lumberjack?” She questioned cutely. 

“The cutest.” Jungeun admitted, kissing her back softly. 

Sooyoung looked around as the class slowly began to fill, turning back to look back into those pretty eyes of her girlfriend. Her _girlfriend_. It felt nice to be able to say that and have it be true. Or in Jungeun’s words, an “official thing”. She found it cute though. “I should probably go now. Pizza later?” 

“I wish.. but I have to study like hell today.. I’m sorry.” She said apologetically and Sooyoung shook her head.

“No need to apologize. I get it. Just call me when you’re free?”

“Will do.” Jungeun smiled, letting Sooyoung kiss her again before she walked off. She smiled to herself the entire time during that class, her eyes traveling to the back of the classroom every once in a while. Doyeon was there, but thankfully she wasn’t paying any attention to Jungeun. She seemed to be focused on class for once. Maybe she was stressed about exams too. 

Everyone was.

* * *

“Can’t believe you’re actually dating the girl.” Bora pointed out, walking around the flower shop. “I mean, not that she’s a good person to date.. it’s just, wow, doesn’t seem like your type.” She explained better.

Jungeun picked up a flower and smelled it, her face grimacing at the smell of it. “Well I didn’t really know my type before.. I mean, in women. Well men too but, yeah. I guess I never really knew, until I met her.” 

Bora understood. “Well, I support you 100%.” 

“Exy doesn’t seem to..” Jungeun pointed out and Bora stopped for a moment, before grabbing a flower and looking it over. 

“Oh no.. she supports _you_. However, around the time Sooyoung was with you know who— well they were friends. She never really liked Sooyoung, she respected her in some way but yeah. It’s not you.” 

“It’s not me. But it’s my girlfriend.” Jungeun said in disbelief. “My friend doesn’t like my girlfriend. As if I didn’t have exams to stress about.” 

“Well, as long as you like her, nothing else matters. Remember that.” Bora assured.

* * *

Jungeun sat alone outside underneath the tree, using it for shade and also because it was pretty relaxing. She had a perfect view of the campus and everyone that walked to and from places. She was studying a few notes before her exam later that day. She’d just gotten out of her physics class where she took an exam that drained her of her entirety. She still had about a week before her human anatomy class exam. She was completely focused on her page full of notes, when suddenly she heard two people walking over to her. It almost seemed like they were arguing. 

“I’m not ready.” Heejin argued, attempting to pull her arm free from Sooyoung’s grasp. 

“You’ll be fine. She’s nice.” Sooyoung assured, pulling her closer to Jungeun. The blonde finally looked up at the two of them, and Heejin instantly smiled.

“Hey babe.” Sooyoung smiled. “Could you help my friend here? This is Heejin.. she needs some help studying for her anatomy class.” 

“O-Oh. Of course. Hi— Jungeun..” She stood up, smiling and reaching out a hand to formally introduce herself. Heejin smiled back and did the same.

“I told her I wasn’t ready to meet you just yet. You seemed like you were focused. But Sooyoung didn’t care.” She laughed.

“No it’s fine. My exam isn’t until next week for this class. I just like getting a head start and all. I’ll gladly help you. Um.. are we studying here?” 

“Here is fine.” Heejin quickly said. 

“You two have fun.” Sooyoung smiled, before squatting a little lower to kiss her girlfriend. “I have a math exam right now. My professor is such a pain in the ass.” She scoffed. 

They both watched her walk off and then turned to each other. “You don’t have to stay here you know. Didn’t seem like you wanted to be here..” She pointed out. 

Heejin stumbled over her words. “No! It’s not that it’s just, I’m not that great with new people, especially when Sooyoung isn’t there with her silly charming stupid social skills.” She explained. “I did want to meet you. I just.. wasn’t ready yet.” 

“Did you think you’d know when you’d be ready?” 

“Eh, no. I don’t think I would be. Maybe I needed the push.” She smiled. “So about this studying..” 

Jungeun smiled in her direction. “Right.”

* * *

Sooyoung walked through the hallway, letting time pass by as she waited around. She had just gotten off of the phone with her brother, he let her know he’d be there soon. It generally took about an hour to get over to her parents house, and that was if she left early enough to avoid traffic. Which she did that day. She actually had a game later that day, and if she could’ve avoided coming over here before it, she would’ve really appreciated it. 

She heard the room door open and she instantly turned around, seeing the doctor that had just come out of the room. Her eyes were hopeful, wanting to hear anything good in that moment. The woman just gave her a sympathetic look, shaking her head. Sooyoung scoffed, running a hand through her hair. 

“Her health is deteriorating. It was revealed this week that the cancer has spread from her breast to her bones. I’m sorry.” 

Sooyoung shook her head, looking up at the ceiling as her eyes watered. “I mean, is there a treatment plan in place? Anything?” 

“Well.. we’d actually like to move her to the hospital again so we can give her more rounds of chemo. We’ll be adding onto the chemo used for her breast.” She explained. “It’s going to be hard on her, and her body, and of course her family. You’ll need to be here to support her.” 

The woman walked by Sooyoung with her medical kit, and the red haired girl exhaled as quietly as she could. Her eyes watering as she quickly wiped the tears that managed to fall down her cheeks. 

She took a few deep breaths and slowly walked into the room where her mother was. The woman hadn’t looked in the direction of the door, her eyes just looking out the window beside her bed. She lay propped up against 2 pillows and a warm blanket on her body. Her skin pale and the IV liquids flowing through her veins. “Mom…?” Sooyoung called out and the woman slowly turned to her.

“Oh Sooyoung–“ She smiled. “My darling.. I’m sure you heard the amazing news.” She said sarcastically, and Sooyoung chuckled lightheartedly.

“This might be a dumb question but… how are you feeling?” 

“Tired.” She simply said, watching as Sooyoung sat in the chair beside her bed. “Exhausted.. would be a better word.” She added quietly. 

Sooyoung hated seeing her mother like this. Her mother had been diagnosed with cancer 2 years ago. She beat it once and it came back again stronger. She’s been bedridden for a year now. Every time she visited, her mother was in bed. She was obviously exhausted, and she hid how broken she was for the sake of her kids and her husband. “I’m sure you are.. wish I could help.” Sooyoung sadly said.

“You’re helping just by being here..” 

Sooyoung scoffed. “Unfortunately that doesn’t seem to be helping you much since I’m here every other week and your condition is getting worse omma.” 

“That’s true huh?” Her mother laughed, before coughing right after. Sooyoung quickly jumped up to grab her some water, bringing the glass over to her with a straw. She watched the weak woman take a few sips. “How’s school?” 

“Umm it’s great.” She smiled.

“And basketball?” 

“Even better.. I actually have a game later today. Maybe you’ll be my good luck charm.” 

Her mother laughed dryly. “I’m all out of good luck as you can see.” 

“You have a lot of good luck.” Sooyoung assured. 

The woman fully turned to Sooyoung, caressing her cheek. “How have you been?” 

“I’ve been fine, you know, focusing on school and—“

The woman gave a knowing look before cutting her off. “No.. how have you really been..?” 

Sooyoung removed the woman’s hand from her face. “I said I’ve been fine.” 

“It’s just.. your father told me it’s the anniversary of your birth mother—“

“I said, I’m _fine_.” Sooyoung sternly said, moving away from the woman. “So please, don’t bring it up again… ask anything else please..” 

“Your brother tells me you have a girlfriend.” She smiled, quickly changing to subject for Sooyoung’s sake. “How is she?” 

“She’s… great. She’s smart, she’s funny, has one of the best smiles I’ve ever seen.” Sooyoung smiled brightly. “You’d like her.” 

“Then I guess that warrants a meeting?” 

“Maybe. When you’re feeling a little better.. you need to make sure you stay hydrated.. and run Sunwoo crazy whenever you need something.” 

They both laughed at that, and Sooyoung gently kissed her hand. It was cold and shaky, so she held onto it tighter. “So I’ll be meeting her very soon?”

“Keep that same energy omma. I’ll make sure to come and visit again okay?” 

“You’re leaving so soon?” 

“My game is in 3 hours.. with this traffic, I’ll be late.” She said apologetically. “But I’ll come back. Very soon.” She kissed her forehead, and went on about her day.

There were things Sooyoung never shared about her life with people. The first one, is that she was actually an orphan at a young age. Her mother commited suicide when she was 8 and her father died in a car accident when she was 14. He taught her about basketball and even allowed her to join multiple teams inside and out of school the years before he died. She was an only child. She spent about 2 years in an orphanage when she was adopted by her current parents. They took her in, and 2 years after they had her brother Sunwoo. 

Sooyoung had gone to therapy a lot, she never really could tell if it helped or not. Her parents pushed her to be a doctor, saying it’d be good money for her. Despite having money through her family, they wanted to teach her independence. Her “family” was also full of doctors and they wanted that for her too. She resisted it, but in the end she lost. But they allowed her to still play basketball, so she accepted it. 

She was emotionally attached to anyone she ever liked and yet had attachment issues at the same time. She was romantic, but she was afraid of it too. She was afraid to lose anyone in her life. She was afraid to lose people just like she lost her parents. And just like she was about to lose her adoptive mother. 

She was afraid, and yet she was so into Jungeun that she let herself fall in deeper despite the gnawing feeling in her brain. 

_**//** _

“Everything okay captain?” Lisa questioned, as Sooyoung sat in the locker room inhaling and exhaling. 

Sooyoung stopped briefly, turning to the girl who had her hair up in a ponytail. “Um yeah. I’m fine. You?” 

“I’m ready is what I am.” She smiled. “If we win this game, we move to the next bracket of the semi-finals.” 

“If?” Sooyoung questioned. “We are going to win it.” She smiled, fist bumping Lisa as the rest of the team poured into the locker room, getting ready for the game. 

She tried to get in touch with Jungeun before the game, but the girl seemed to be busy with something since she hadn’t picked up her calls or replied to her texts. 

The last time she spoke to Jungeun was earlier in the day on campus. She gave her tons of kisses and then she let her be on her way, watching the blonde with no shame. Taking in how good she looked even from behind. She was so lucky to have someone as stunning as Jungeun as her own. Sooyoung sat quietly on the bench as the other girls in the locker room spoke loudly, the sound being drowned out by her own thoughts. All she could really think about was her sick mother and she just desperately needed some grounding again. The one person who could do that wasn’t returning her calls or texts.

Her foot anxiously tapped against the floor as she held her hands together firmly. She felt a few hands patting her back as her teammates walked by her, she forced a smile on her face, greeting them as they walked by her. Suddenly someone sat beside her, placing a hand firmly on her shoulder. “Hey, everything okay?” Eunseo questioned, and Sooyoung slowly turned to her, the noise around her suddenly becoming prominent again.

“Yeah.” She smiled brightly. “Everything is okay.” 

“Then let’s go. We’re going out onto the court now.” 

Sooyoung adjusted her jersey before standing up and following the girls out of the locker room. She could hear the deafening cheers from her home crowd. The past 2 games had been at another school or in another district. It felt good to be back home. She forgot what she was even thinking about once she stepped out in front of that crowd, an adrenaline rush flowing through her veins as she smiled at the cheerers. She also spotted Jinsoul, who was doing a routine on the court with the other cheerleaders as the game was beginning to start. She winked in Sooyoung’s direction, resulting in a smile on the red haired girl’s face. 

She rocked her burgundy and black jersey, her name printed in burgundy on her upper back and her jersey number, 9, on her middle back. She high-fived all of her teammates as they walked onto the court, a few others sitting on the bench. Her eyes scanned the crowd once more and her heart jumped when she finally found the woman she was looking for. Her blonde hair up in a cute ponytail, a cute white long sleeve that fit her body just right, and jeans that made Sooyoung unconsciously run her thumb along her bottom lip. Smirking at the blonde with no shame. 

Jungeun gave her two thumbs up before joining the crowd again as they clapped. 

She suddenly felt a spurt of energy go through her body. Taking her spot on the court as she watched the jump ball happen in front of her. Unfortunately the other time received it first, but Sooyoung never panicked. It was only the first play of the game and they had plenty of time. 

Jungeun was always mesmerized by Sooyoung’s playstyle. How smooth she moved and yet how aggressive she could be when she was running up the court. Draining a three from the line or just simply doing a layup. She also had a thing for behind the back passes, tricking her opponent at times.

Jungeun jumped up and clapped whenever the home team made another score. She enjoyed the crowds, the support and most of all, having her girlfriend cheering her on in the stands. She was big on having confidence on and off the court. She played harder that day, getting 3 fouls against her. She kept her frustrations in check, however, wanting to stay on the court and not get ejected from the game. 

When it hit halftime, the team went back into the locker rooms. Jungeun watched as the team disappeared from the court and the cheerleaders took charge. She stood up, excusing herself as she moved past those that were sitting beside her. She found her way to the locker room, a few of the girls in there smiling at her as she walked around aimlessly looking for Sooyoung. She finally found her, giggling at how quickly she downed a beverage. 

“You’re quite the player tonight huh?” Sooyoung heard from behind her, and she immediately turned around, kissing Jungeun immediately and earning a laugh from her. She took in just how sexy Jungeun looked in such a simple outfit. Her eyes scanned the girl’s body before landing back on her favorite pair of brown eyes. “Sorry for being so late and missing your calls.. I had to drop my brother off somewhere. My mom forced me to do it before I came here.” She explained and Sooyoung kissed her forehead.

She cutely let out a sigh of relief. “Sheesh, I thought you were out there somewhere entertaining another girl or something.” She jokingly said, and Jungeun playfully hit her. 

“Never.” She assured her. “I’d never miss a game if I could help it..” 

“I appreciate that. Thank you baby.” She kissed her again, before they heard their coach walk into the room, blowing a loud whistle. Sooyoung was used to it, but the sound definitely made Jungeun jump, cowering into Sooyoung’s arms. The taller girl laughed, holding the girl in her right arm and holding a case of gatorades in the other. 

“Listen up— this game is pretty close. We have another long 2 months ahead of us if we win this game. It’s a large bracket with a lot of amazing teams. Don’t get cocky because you steamroll a few here and there.” He said to them. “We’re only up by 10 which can easily be deducted if you get careless. You’re playing amazing so keep that same energy for the home stretch alright?” He said.

“Yes sir!” Lisa said playfully, saluting him and making the other players laugh. He shook his head. 

“Alright. You have 2 minutes to get back onto the court.” He announced before allowing them to all get back to what they were doing.

“I should probably get back to my seat huh?” Jungeun pointed out. 

“Yeah. Or you could sit courtside.” Sooyoung offered with a tempting smirk. 

Jungeun laughed, although the offer was definitely tempting. She couldn’t leave her friends. “I would but… I can’t leave my new best friend behind.” 

“What? Bestfriend?” Sooyoung questioned, grabbing Jungeun back by the wrist as she tried to walk off.

“Mhm. Heejin.” She teased.

“Oh please..” Sooyoung scoffed lightly, holding the girl’s hand and walking back out towards the court. She kissed the blonde just as they parted ways. Jinsoul caught the exchange as she moved back to the courtside herself, but instantly looked away when Sooyoung moved in her direction. 

She handed the cheerleaders a gatorade, winking at Jinsoul when she placed one in her hand. The black haired woman hated the way it gave her butterflies whenever she did that. But she ignored it, or at least attempted to ignore it.

Sooyoung sat for a good amount of the 3rd quarter. But by the start of the 4th, she was back in the game. The team was beginning to get a little behind without her there to help. But the moment she stepped in, she got them to at least tie up with the other team. Jungeun was slightly nervous watching from her end, the lead constantly going back and forth. “Ah, you seem nervous.” Heejin pointed out as she noticed Jungeun’s leg bouncing up and down. She gently patted her back with a bright smile on her face. “These games are the best. Gets the adrenaline pumping and leaves you on the edge of your seat.” 

Jungeun agreed, but she didn’t know if she liked that feeling or not. She liked to see Sooyoung completely in her element, destroying the other team in the process. 

She slowly began to relax towards the end of the 4th quarter, Sooyoung and Eunseo had worked perfectly together to get Lisa into the paint to make a shot. Their chemistry was golden, and if it wasn’t them making the shots, it was Sooyoung. Completely forcing her way up the middle to get a point. It was impressive, even Heejin laughed at the look on Jungeun’s face. She was totally into it. 

Once the game ended, the crowd jumped up, cheering loudly as the team on the floor celebrated moving up the bracket. Heejin hugged the girl, and Jinsoul also congratulated her before she was pulled off by her friends. Heejin followed too, waving goodbye at the girl still standing in the bleachers. 

Jungeun walked down the stairs towards the court, spotting Sooyoung’s wandering eyes looking for her after she noticed Heejin waving. “Good job.” Jungeun said to her, shyly smiling at how Sooyoung just couldn’t get enough of her outfit. She didn’t even try to hide how hard she was looking. It made her feel good about herself, but it also melted her into a puddle in the ground. She didn’t think she’d ever get used to Sooyoung looking at her like she was the most attractive person in the world. To be fair, Jungeun knew she was quite attractive, but it was different when someone else was drooling over her. Especially that someone being Ha Sooyoung. 

“Want to go grab something to eat?” Sooyoung questioned, her heart melting as she stood in place, allowing Jungeun to wipe the sweat from her forehead with a towel. 

“Oh you’re actually taking me out to get food now? No longer want to be my personal chef?” She teased, finishing her task with a smile still on her face. 

“Hmm not tonight. I’m actually a bit exhausted.” Sooyoung laughed. “Plus I have something to show you.” 

“Oh?” 

“It’s a surprise.” She added, just before they got interrupted by a friend of Sooyoung’s.

“Yo. Great game Sooyoung. I also won 30 bucks tonight because of how you played.” 

“Really Sehun?” Sooyoung whined.

He pulled the money from his pocket and flashed it at her. “Yeah! 20 if you got 20 points this game. 10 if you won the game too.” He smiled, and she snatched the money from him. “Hey!” He complained.

Sooyoung kept him at a distance with her arm outstretched, laughing as she put the money in her back pocket. “Jungeun, this is my friend Sehun. He plays for the football team here. Sehun, this is my _amazing_ girlfriend.” 

He bowed respectfully at her and she did the same to him. “Nice to meet you Jungeun.” He gave her a charming smile before turning back to Sooyoung. “Give me my money back.” 

“Come to one of my games again without it involving money next time and I will.” She pointed out and he rolled his eyes, giving up for the second time. 

“Whatever.” He groaned. She watched as he looked back at his own group of friends, crossing his arms and turning back to the two girls.” We’re going down to the creek to drink and chill. You two want to come?” 

Sooyoung gave him a look of disgust. “Ew. No. Besides, I have plans already.” She pointed out, waving their interlocked fingers at him. 

“Ehhh it was worth a try.” He said with a sly smile. “Catch you later Sooyoung— and it was nice to finally meet you Jungeun.” 

Sooyoung shook her head at him as he walked off, tripping over a chair on the way back. His friends laughed at him as he tried to play it off but everyone had already seen it anyway.

“Let’s get going yeah?” 

**_//_ **

“Do you think you can stay at my place tonight?” Sooyoung asked. 

The girls had stopped at a simple burger place that was closing soon. Sooyoung bought them both shakes with fries and a burger of Jungeun’s choice. She ate some of the fries as Sooyoung drove to the destination. “Uhhh, I’d have to see. My parents have been pretty on me about being out late as it is.. I can’t even imagine them letting me stay out.” She frustratedly said.

“I understand.” 

“But I’ll try.” She smiled, kissing Sooyoung’s cheek as she focused on the road. They began driving through a pretty quiet area with just a lot of trees around. And eventually there weren’t even trees, just mountains. “Uh… where are we?” Jungeun questioned.

“Somewhere special. Trust me.” She assured, squeezing her thigh to comfort the woman in the passenger seat. It began to get a little bumpy as Sooyoung drove up a hill of some sort. But when she got there, Jungeun was sure they could fall to their death. “Here.” The taller girl said, as if it was nothing. She stepped out of the car and Jungeun just stayed put. Sooyoung laughed when she noticed how paranoid her girlfriend was. 

“It’s safe. I promise. Come out.” She said, opening the door on her side and reaching out for her hand. As terrified as she was, she trusted Sooyoung. So she took her hand, allowing herself to be helped out of the car. She didn’t need help, but Sooyoung always insisted on doing it anyway. The woman took a look at her car and groaned. “I’ll definitely need a car wash after today..” She complained, seeing the dirt and mud that splattered onto it from their little drive up here. 

She grabbed the food as well and put it onto the car hood, removing the jacket she wore. It had her jersey number on the right side and her initials on the left. She gently placed it atop Jungeun’s shoulders, smiling at how shy the girl had become when she did it. She sat on the hood of her car, gesturing for Jungeun to join her. The blonde was taken aback by the sight of the sun setting from the view they had acquired. “How do you find the most beautiful remote areas to relax?” Jungeun questioned, taking some more fries to accompany her milkshake.

“I have my way.” Sooyoung smiled. She hadn’t even realized how bad her day had started. She always felt better when Jungeun was in the picture. She was like her little good luck charm and her happy pill. They hardly talked on the ride here and she didn’t mind one bit. They just listened to music and Sooyoung felt overwhelmed by how much she liked the girl beside her. How content she was with just sitting in comfortable silence with Jungeun. 

They finished their food rather quickly. Sooyoung was usually pretty hungry after games anyway. She never really ate before them or during them. It made her feel sluggish, so she just made sure to stay hydrated whenever she could. It was the reason she would get food immediately after games, if not alone; then with friends. 

“It’s amazing how quickly the sun can set.. I just watched it happen right in front of my eyes.” Jungeun suddenly said, looking out onto the horizon. Sooyoung agreed completely. But it was also relaxing and she enjoyed how beautiful it looked seeing the sun slowly hiding behind the mountains further out. “You seem to like nature..” Jungeun pointed out.

Sooyoung looked in her direction after finishing one last fry. “I like a lot of things.” 

“Well yeah.. but, you seem to like things like this. Pretty things, like sunsets and flowers, and—“ 

“You?” Sooyoung questioned, sliding off of the car so she could lean against it. She gently pulled Jungeun in front of her, wrapping her arms around her and placing her chin onto her broad shoulder. She could smell the lavender shampoo from her hair and her soft hands that met Sooyoung’s as they rested on her stomach. She could stay here all day if she could and she wouldn’t complain one bit. 

“Stop….” Her cheeks had grown hot from the sly compliment, and not just that but the feeling of Sooyoung pressed firmly against her back as they looked out in front of them. She didn’t even need the jacket at this point, Sooyoung was already warm enough. She relaxed into her grasp, allowing her neck to be softly kissed and her body to be swayed left and right slowly. 

“Hmm..” Sooyoung hummed against her neck before looking up at the sky. The stars were beginning to shine a lot brighter now, and the moon had finally made an appearance from behind the thick clouds that dispersed from the naked eye. “I also like poetry. I like to paint. I’m not that great at it, but I find it relaxing.. I love to dance, I can sing a bit.. I used to go on morning walks but I got lazy over the years. I like sleeping in the morning.” 

“You like a lot of things.” 

“I do.” She admitted. “But you’re definitely at the top of the list.” 

Jungeun hid her face in her hands. “You just always find a way huh?” 

“Mhm.” Her arms held her just a little tighter. “What do you like? Besides me, of course.” The woman teased, her body vibrating from the feeling of Jungeun’s laugh. 

She pretended to be in deep thought, thinking about what to say next. “Besides you? Hmm..” She tapped a finger against her temple. “I like to sing. I like yoga, although I don’t do it anymore. I like to sleep. I used to like reading until I started college. Um.. I like kids, and dogs. I like flowers too, that’s more of a newfound thing though.” 

“Do you like a specific flower?” 

“Hm. Pretty ones.” 

“All flowers are pretty.” She protested.

“That’s debatable.” 

“Well— I’ll make sure to keep getting you pretty flowers.” She assured, kissing her cheek again. They just sat there, talking about their hobbies. They also talked about things they disliked since they already talked about the things they do like. Sooyoung insisted on taking a few pictures of Jungeun beneath the night sky now, since she’d already taken one of her 

Jungeun’s phone suddenly rang, and she pulled the phone from her pocket and looked at the name on the screen. It was her mother calling, and she noticed it had just turned 10pm. She’d already been on this mountain for over an hour now? “I have to take this.” Jungeun excused herself, moving a little further away from Sooyoung before she answered. 

Sooyoung just checked her own phone, seeing if she received any messages. 

_From, Little Idiot: Idiot. You left before I could even see you today. But I guess you heard the news. Omma’s getting sicker. Come by again soon? I miss you. And bring your best shoes. I want to cross your ass up._ She laughed at the message, her brother always challenged her in basketball despite the fact she kicked his ass every single time. She supposed it was an ego thing. Men were fragile. 

_From, Heekie: Forgot to get your girlfriends number. Ask her if she’s down for some reviewing tomorrow? Thanks. Also, love you. Good job on your game today HaSoo <3 _

_From, Jinsoul: Free this week?_

Just as she was about to respond, Jungeun walked back over to her with a bright smile on her face. She placed her phone back into her pocket and gave her girlfriend all of her attention. “I um— convinced my mom to let me stay the night.” 

“Shit really?” Sooyoung said excitedly, standing up fully now. “I can finally sleep with you.” 

Jungeun quickly hit the girl on her arm, her face turning an unbelievably bright shade of red. “Sooyoung!”

“It’s not my fault your mind is so dirty.” Sooyoung teased even more.

“You know exactly what you’re doing everytime you say that.” Jungeun whined. 

“Maybe. But it’s just because I know it’ll turn you into a little tomato.” She smiled. “Let’s get home before it gets super late. I need a shower.” 

_**//** _

Jungeun stepped out of the bathroom and looked down at the shirt she wore. Sooyoung had given her something to wear for the night while she stayed over. She stood on the other side of the room, removing her jewelry so she could shower. “Out of every shirt in your possession you give me _this_ one?” She complained cutely.

She placed her rings down gently onto the dresser before turning around and pulling her hair out of its ponytail. A smile on her face as she stifled a laugh. “What? I personally think it’s cute.” She teased, reading the words on the shirt once more.

Jungeun looked down at it once again, and then back at Sooyoung. The shirt was white, ( _which looked amazing on Jungeun by the way_ ) with the silliest neuroscience joke on it. 

It read, “What do you call a skull without 1 billion neurons? A no-brainer.” With a cute smiling brain right below it. Sooyoung laughed even harder now and Jungeun couldn’t even pretend to be upset anymore when she saw that wide smile on her face. She just accepted her fate, besides, Sooyoung seemed to like it. 

She kissed her in passing as she walked by her to get into the bathroom. Jungeun moved to the bed, giving a look of approval when she felt how comfy it was. “I won’t be long.” Sooyoung said, as she came out of the bathroom to grab her clothes and then back in. She hadn’t shut the door, so Jungeun could see the clothes she took off piling in front of the entrance. 

And Sooyoung didn’t lie, it really didn’t take her long. Although Jungeun was slightly dozing off now, she still could calculate how long Sooyoung was in the bathroom for. It had to be less than 4 minutes. She opened her eyes when she heard the water stop. “All doneeee.” Sooyoung said cutely, drying herself off as fast as possible. She just wanted to be with Jungeun again. 

When she stepped out of the bathroom, they exchanged smiles. “Someone is tired.” Sooyoung pointed out, kissing Jungeun’s cheek as she got into the bed with her. 

“And you’re… not.” Jungeun mumbled.

“Hmm.. no. I’m pretty tired too. The shower just gave me a little energy, but I would probably be like you otherwise.” She grabbed her remote and turned the led lights off, the room still slightly lit up from the glow in the dark star stickers on the walls. 

Jungeun got comfy, laying on her side and facing away from Sooyoung as her eyes closed against her will. She felt a little bad, but she really was exhausted. Sooyoung didn’t mind though, she never did. Her heart nearly exploded when she felt Sooyoung come closer to her, bringing an arm over her body and pulling her closer. “Goodnight my love.” She said sweetly, kissing Jungeun’s cheek and snuggling up against her. 

That alone nearly woke her up, because now she couldn’t stop hearing the sound of her own heart. Not to mention how good Sooyoung smelled. She couldn’t tell if it was the shampoo or the soap she used for her body. Regardless, she didn’t mind the floral fragrance, it was actually quite relaxing. 

She felt safe in Sooyoung’s arms like this. She came to realize she’d never really slept in a bed with a lover. She’d also never been held this way before, like she was being protected and loved. She’s never felt so safe while closing her eyes. _She made a mental note to add this to her list of likes_ , Sooyoung’s lips were placed against the exposed areas of skin, gentle, soothing kisses whenever she moved slightly in her arms. Probably just to let Jungeun know she was still there with her. 

She liked opening her eyes at random times of the night and seeing Sooyoung sleeping peacefully. She didn’t know how someone could still be so beautiful even while sleeping. Her free arm was placed onto her forehead while the other was stuck underneath Jungeun’s body. But she didn’t mind. 

Jungeun kissed her cheek softly as to not wake her before resting her head onto her chest and going back to sleep. 

_**//** _

Sooyoung wasn’t lying when she said she didn’t like waking up in the mornings anymore. But Jungeun was right behind her. They hadn’t woken up until 2pm the following day, completely separated from each other in the large bed. Sooyoung was laying towards the edge now, her arm dangling off of the bed. Jungeun sat up, rubbing her eyes to wake herself up. She usually woke up early mornings, but her body must’ve felt so comfortable with Sooyoung. Her slumber was deep. It was also nice not being woken up by her parents or siblings for some odd reason in the morning. 

The sound of Sooyoung’s alarm going off made Jungeun jump, but it didn’t ring for long. Sooyoung slowly turned around towards her, stretching her long limbs and exhaling. “Good morning.” She said, her voice slightly raspy from her slumber. Jungeun giggled in response, liking the way she sounded in that moment.

“It’s 2pm.” The blonde announced, and Sooyoung sat up fully now.

“Aish..” She grumbled. “We should eat.” 

“You just wake up with food on your mind?” Jungeun questioned as the girl wobbled to the bathroom. 

“I go to sleep with it on my mind too.” 

Jungeun shook her head, “For someone that eats as much as you do.. it doesn’t show.” 

Sooyoung returned with a toothbrush in her mouth now, tossing an unopened one at Jungeun. “I could say the same for you.” She said, brushing her teeth and trying to talk at the same time.

“Yeah.. yeah..” 

She rinsed her mouth out with water before drying her mouth quickly with a towel. “That’s the best sleep I’ve ever gotten.” She admitted, walking by Jungeun to find something to wear. 

“You’re welcome.” 

“Oh shut up.” Sooyoung smiled, feeling her heart smile too when Jungeun returned a bright one in her direction.

* * *

“Helloooooooo!” Jiwoo shouted excitedly from her end, piercing the blonde’s eardrums in the process. “Aish— that girlfriend of yours is taking you away from me.” She pouted, and Jungeun assured her she wasn’t. 

“I have my human anatomy final this week on the same day as Sooyoung’s game.” Jungeun sadly spoke. “The one time she has a day game, I’m going to be stuck in a stupid final.” 

“Hey, the final isn’t stupid. The basketball game is stupid for being scheduled on such an important day.” She cutely said, earning a giggle from Jungeun. “I’ll be home next month you know. I’ll finally be able to meet this Sooyoung.” 

Jungeun turned to the screen again. “I feel like everytime you call me now it’s to talk about her.” She pointed out jokingly. “Are you in love with her or something?” 

“Yes!” Jiwoo smiled. “Ahhh, I’m just excited to meet the person that’s making my favorite person all mushy and smiley. Is that so wrong? Besides, a hug from you is long overdue. I can’t ever do this again huh?” 

Jungeun agreed, pushing her books aside for a moment. “Nope. Ever again. I’m banning you from leaving the country.” Jiwoo laughed at that, agreeing wholeheartedly with the idea. 

“I have faith that you will ace your exams.” Jiwoo said, giving Jungeun much needed encouragement. “Otherwise I’m not bringing you these chocolate covered pretzels they have here in American.” She threatened and Jungeun gasped.

“You’re evil.” 

“No I’m not!” Her eyes got wide. “I miss you.” 

“Just one more month.” Jungeun reminded her and Jiwoo smiled, giving her a few finger hearts to add to it.

_**//** _

Heejin sat in front of Jungeun on the grass, her book in her lap with a pencil in her hand. Jungeun held a book in her hands, reading about the important parts of the human body. Jinsoul noticed them from afar, moving to join them as she skipped across the campus. “Study session?” She questioned, and the two girls looked up at the sudden intruder, only to realize it was Jinsoul.

“Yeah. Join us.” Jungeun politely offered and the standing woman smiled, placing her things onto the ground to join them. “We’ve been here for about 30 minutes now.” 

“Oh? Not long then, perfect.” She smiled.

“I can’t believe this guy just decided to create an entire math notion called the fucking Pythagorean theorem. Like seriously, what inspired him to ruin young people’s lives?” She complained, her tiny fists resting in her lap. 

“The same thing that inspired someone to even create physics as a whole.” Jinsoul mentioned, and Jungeun agreed wholeheartedly. “How’s your doctoring coming along?” 

Jungeun sighed in response. “It’s exhausting. I feel like at this point I should know the insides and outs of a body, and yet I don’t. It’s still so much more shit to learn.”

“Yeah but you’re smart. You got this.” Heejin encouraged. 

“Thanks Heejin.” She smiled, and the brown haired girl winked. 

“Well— at least you guys aren’t sitting in class reading the inside and outs of every law ever made. Did you know, in America, there’s a state named New Hampshire, it’s illegal to collect seaweed there at night?” Jinsoul questioned and the two other girls looked at her in disbelief. “I had the same face. It’s insane.” 

“I’m surprised you’re even trying to be a lawyer. You can barely go at it with your siblings without stumbling over your words. Let alone some crazy freak in a court defending his client.” Heejin pointed out, biting the top of her pen. 

“Hey— I’ve gotten better at confrontation.” She defended and Heejin laughed.

“I’m sure the both of you will excel in your majors.” Jungeun added, finding an even ground for the both of them. 

Jinsoul found it hard to dislike Jungeun. In all honesty, she hadn’t done anything wrong. She was sweet, and fairly attractive. If she hadn’t had this weird thing for Sooyoung, she’d probably be looking in her direction. They danced together but everyone did that, besides, she was drunk that night anyway and could hardly remember a thing. She was 100% sure Jungeun didn’t either. They’ve met in passing at some point but they never really got to sit down and talk to each other to form an acquaintance of some sort. Not until recently anyway. 

Jinsoul was flawed. She wasn’t perfect and she never tried to be. One of her worst flaws, however, was wanting people after they didn’t want her anymore. It happened all of the time for her, it was actually amazing how quickly it blindsided her too. She came to realize she actually did want Sooyoung, in some weird way, about 2 months ago. She was far too late now, she was head over heels for the blonde beside her. She couldn’t lie to herself, she was jealous, and yet happy for Sooyoung. She had a rough year. She didn’t show it much, but she and Heejin knew. They were her closest friends after all. She found herself distancing a little though. Knowing she would cause hurt to her fragile heart if she was around Sooyoung as much as she used to be.

It was bad enough she cheered for the damn girl. Not to mention how they used to attend 3 of the same classes together. That was until Sooyoung switched out for ones that suited her major. It was also obvious who Sooyoung was closer to out of the two of them. She didn’t blame her though. Heejin was.. Heejin. And Jinsoul, was Jinsoul. Heejin was more like Sooyoung in some ways. Jinsoul and Sooyoung were far different from each other, complete opposites that attracted at some point. She missed her chance, blew it even. She had no one to blame but herself. 

She quickly grabbed her things. “You know, I’m actually going to go. I forgot I had to do something for my debate club today.” She lied, standing up.

“Aww what…” Heejin whined, shielding the sun from her eyes as she looked up in Jinsoul’s direction.

“Sorry… maybe some other time though? There’s still 2 weeks of the exam period. Plenty of time to study together right?” 

“Absolutely. Thanks for sitting with us anyway.” Jungeun calmly spoke, turning back to her work. Heejin watched as Jinsoul walked off. 

“Everyone’s so jumpy lately.” She pointed out, scratching her head.

Jungeun sighed deeply. “Exams will do that to you.” 

“It’s like I can’t even complain about how I don’t need half of this shit the way I complained in high school. Because it’s like, I applied for these classes because I _do_ need this shit.. can’t even slack off. Paying to get educated. What a scam.” 

“You ramble a lot.” Jungeun pointed out, flipping the page of her book.

“Sorry.. is it annoying?” 

“No. You just look at things differently.. I like it.” She smiled, and Heejin shyly smiled as well.

“I wish I was like Sooyoung. She barely studies and still aces exams. She’s quite literally not a real person. No real person is perfect at everything like she is.” She complimented. “You’re a lucky girl.” 

“Huh? You’re saying that like you don’t know her. She’s your friend silly.” 

“That’s true. She’s my friend. But I’d like to think she’s my sister in some ways.” She corrected. 

“Well she definitely treats you like one. You’re lucky too. My ‘sister’ isn’t even in the country.” Jungeun mentioned nonchalantly, adding to the conversation. 

“Whatttttt? Is she your pen pal or something?” 

“No. She was just visiting family in America. She comes back next month though.”

“Is she anything like you though? We don’t need another attractive, smart and popular girl magnet stealing my shine.” She playfully said and Jungeun kicked her lightly, just enough to hit her knee. Heejin laughed as well, pushing her leg away. 

“It’s weird how the way you describe me is how I would describe you.” 

“Huh? You think I’m all of those things? I suppose we really are best friends huh?” 

“Don’t even let Sooyoung hear you say that.” They both laughed, finishing the rest of the afternoon off with some studying.

* * *

Jungeun made sure to tidy up the house a bit while her parents were out at work. It was the first time Sooyoung was coming over to see her and she wanted things to look presentable, including her room. Younghoon watched her run around the house like a maniac for the past 2 hours. “Jungeun-ah!” He yelled. “The house is already clean enough!” 

She stopped herself from going into the kitchen and looked at her brother on the sofa. “You’re right. You’re right. I’m just nervous and stuff.” 

“For what? You already have the girl. It’s not like you need to impress her anymore.” He explained. “Girls are so dramatic.” 

“And boys are boring.” She retorted, thinking of anything else she needed to clean up. 

“Wow. That one really hurt.” He said sarcastically. 

“You took the meat out of the freezer for mom right?” 

“Mhm. Don’t need her bitching at me about anything. I’m having a good day.” He responded, putting his feet up on the sofa. 

Their parents arrived home before Sooyoung did. Their father, for once, also noticed how much tidier the place looked. Younghoon quickly took his feet off the sofa when he heard their mother arriving shortly after their father did. She placed her purse onto the sofa and walked into the kitchen. “I need to get started on dinner before Younghoon’s friend shows up.” She said, and Jungeun felt herself nearly throw up at that sentence. Younghoon just laughed as he leaned against the wall, watching their mother busily moving around the kitchen. 

Jungeun pulled him away from the kitchen and towards the living room. Thankfully their father was upstairs for once. Probably getting cleaned up after work. “Okay, so here are the rules.”

“What the fuck? What rules?” 

“Rule #1. Don’t stare too much.” 

“Well I have to look at her..” He pointed out. 

“Don’t look hard. Look in spare glances.” She said sternly. “Rule #2. Don’t be touchy. I know we agreed that’d you pretend to be.. something to her. But for the sake of my heart and you living to see another day, _watch_ your hands.”

He scoffed, rolling his eyes. A habit the both of them possessed. “Okay. No staring, and apparently no touching.” 

“Rule #3. No pet names. No cute nicknames. Just Sooyoung. Her name, is Sooyoung.” 

He pretended to write these things down onto a piece of notebook paper. “Anything else Ms. Kim Jungeun?” He questioned with a smile.

“Rule #4. Pleaseeee don’t blow our cover.. this is the only way I can have her over without Mom and Dad being weird about her…” 

“Don’t even need to worry about that.” He smiled. “And stop stressing so much. If anything, you’d be the one blowing our cover.” He patted her shoulder, before going upstairs to his room.

Sooyoung wouldn’t be there for another few hours. She had practice that day for the game tomorrow. She also hung out with a few friends, but she texted Jungeun pretty much the whole time, or whenever she had a chance to. Jungeun was nervously biting her nails waiting for time to pass by. She missed Sooyoung, despite having seen her yesterday. But she was also nervous about having the girl in her house around her freakishly religious parents. She also hated the idea of “sharing” her with her brother. He’d agree to pretend to be her boyfriend or something, and although she found it to be ridiculous at first, she understood Jungeun’s fear. 

She also realized Sooyoung and her brother haven’t really met. So it’d be their first time meeting each other tonight. She suddenly heard the doorbell ringing, and she jumped up, far too quickly for her own liking. She hadn’t even gone upstairs because she wanted to be right there when the bell rang. She refused to let her mother or father answer the door anyway. They’d probably scare the poor girl off. When she opened the door, she was pleased to see Sooyoung standing there, looking rather pretty. Not that she didn’t any other time, it was just.. different this time around.

Sooyoung wore a floral off the shoulder dress with black jeans, her hair straightened and her makeup light. She smiled when she noticed Jungeun checking her out, and smiling even more when she noticed Jungeun was wearing a black plaid button up. “Now you’re the cute lumberjack.” She said quietly, winking at her just before her mother arrived. Jungeun was still frozen in place seeing Sooyoung’s outfit. She was stunning, but that wasn’t anything new. 

“Oh Jungeun— move aside if you’re not going to let the young woman in.” Her mother said, pushing Jungeun to the side to greet Sooyoung. “My oh my— you really are beautiful.” 

Younghoon finally came down the stairs, his eyes meeting Jungeun’s and then Sooyoung’s. The woman smiled at him, her hands being held by his mother as she led Sooyoung into the home. 

“Hello.” Younghoon said as natural as he could. Jungeun eyed him, noticing he already broke one of the rules. 

“Hello.” She smiled, politely following their mother to the kitchen while the two siblings stayed behind.

Jungeun immediately backhanded him in the chest, and he groaned in pain. “ _What the fuck_?” He whispered, holding his hands against his chest.

“You broke one of the rules.” 

“You didn’t tell me she’d look _that_ pretty.” He whispered again, following his sister as she glared at him briefly. 

“Thankfully dinner is done now. We’ll just have to wait for my husband to finish showering.” She explained. “Jungeun. Could you set the table for our guest here?” The woman placed the plates into Jungeun’s hands before she could even complain. She quickly set the table, her eyes trying to avoid Sooyoung’s. 

“So, are you in college as well?” The woman questioned as Jungeun helped put food on the table.

“Um, yes. Actually I study neuroscience.” 

“Ohh? Pretty and smart.” She complimented, taking a seat at the table. Younghoon sat beside her, and Jungeun had to hold in her annoyance. “My son here didn’t even try with a full university. I suppose he gave it a try with community college.” 

“There’s nothing wrong with community college.” Jungeun defended him, and he cleared his throat.

“Yeah, besides I enjoy playing in a band more than I enjoy school anyways...” He explained and Sooyoung nodded. He felt a little embarrassed at how his mother casually belittled him. But Sooyoung didn’t seem to be bothered by it. The woman noticed their father was taking quite long, so she excused herself and went upstairs.

“Sorry about her..” Jungeun apologized.

Her brother repeated what she said before adding on a few things. “I’m good by the way. My band. We’re pretty good.. I heard you play basketball?” 

“I do.” Sooyoung confirmed. “And I’m pretty good at it.” 

“I know this is awkward for you. It’s awkward for me too. But we just have to make it through dinner… and probably dessert.” He complained. 

“It’s alright. I can manage. As long as she’s across from me..” She pointed out, smiling when she noticed how shy Jungeun had gotten from her tiny remark. 

“Well that’s goo—“

“Hellooo!” Yerim said excitedly, sitting beside Jungeun at the table. “Ohhh pretty! I’m Yerim!” She smiled at the woman across from her.

“Sooyoung.” The girl responded politely. She liked them to be fair. They were all very different from each other. Yerim seemed quite energetic. It was almost comical seeing her beside Jungeun, someone who wasn’t very energetic at all. Younghoon was a typical guy, it was quite average in the personality department. But he loved Jungeun, and that was all that mattered.

Their father walked in, fixing his glasses as he glanced in Sooyoung’s direction. “Oh hello.” Was all he said, sitting at the end of the table while their mother took a seat at the other end. They passed the food around as their parents made conversation. Jungeun was quite grossed out by how good they played this all off. Younghoon smiled at the girl beside him every so often, glancing in Jungeun’s direction and winking to tease her a bit. It took everything in her to not kick him in the shin underneath the table. 

“So Sooyoung—“ Her father spoke, and she felt her throat go dry. He barely ever spoke. “What year are you in?” 

She finished chewing her food and took a few sips of her drink before answering. “I’m in my junior year.” She answered calmly. 

“Ah. Just a year above Jungeun.” He said, cutting the steak he was eating. 

Jungeun just desperately wanted this to be over already. But if the night could get worse somehow, it was the moment her mother opened her mouth. “You know— somewhere down the line I’d like for my son to settle down with a nice woman like yourself.” He looked up from his plate and then at Jungeun, both of their eyes widening in disbelief. “And maybe some grandchildren down the line too—“

Yerim choked on her food when those words left her mother’s mouth. 

“Mom…” Younghoon whined. Sooyoung’s eyes widened at such a baffling statement. Was this woman shameless? 

“Mom didn’t you have to call Aunt Juyeon? You mentioned it a few minutes ago.” Jungeun immediately cut in, feeling nauseous at even the thought of something as despicable as that. Sooyoung cleared her throat as well as Younghoon did. 

“Oh! You’re right. Yerim, could you take the cake out of the oven for me?” 

The younger girl immediately got up to do so. Younghoon mouthed, ‘ _I’m sorry_ ’ to his sister, seeing how flustered she was by the situation. And so was Sooyoung truthfully. But Jungeun felt something on her leg, she looked underneath the table quickly, noticing Sooyoung was running her foot up and down Jungeun’s leg. For some odd reason, it comforted her. _This was all an act_ , she reminded herself of that. 

The woman returned to the kitchen. Clasping her hands together with a bright smile. “So— cake anyone?” 

_**//**_

Jungeun went up to her room after dinner, she tried to stay longer but she couldn’t watch her brother pretending with her girlfriend. It was nauseating and her mother was unbearable. But at least she seemed to like Sooyoung. Maybe in some other universe she’d be able to like her after knowing she was an “abomination”. 

Yerim helped their mother clean up while the other two were finally free from the table. Younghoon watched his father go up the stairs. He was most likely going to bed. “Hey I’m sorry about that. And my sister definitely wants to strangle me.” He laughed, and Sooyoung laughed too.

“She does. But she’ll get over it. I’m sure she appreciates you doing this… for us.” She whispered the last part. 

“She does. She won’t say it outright though. That’s just how she is.” He put one foot onto the step. “Her room is right down the hall once you reach the top step. I’ll see you tomorrow, partner.” He jokingly said, patting her shoulder and going about his way. Sooyoung smiled and followed up the stairs shortly after him. Jungeun’s door was slightly cracked, so you could see a small amount of light peeking through the crack of it. She slowly opened the door, seeing the girl at her desk, doing something on her laptop.

“Jungeun-ah..” Sooyoung sweetly called out to her, shutting the door behind herself and walking over to her. “Are you jealous of my fake boyfriend?”

She groaned in response. “Don’t say that…” 

Sooyoung just laughed, turning Jungeun around to her and kissing her softly. “I can’t go that long with you in front of me without being able to kiss you.” She admitted, kissing her again. “I missed you.” 

“I was there the whole time.” 

“You were there. But I missed _you_.” 

“I missed you too.” She gave a small smile in return. “You should change into something comfortable.” 

“So should you.” She protested and Jungeun chuckled, turning back to her work.

“I will in a bit. I’ll change once my mom’s in bed. I like knowing i’ll be completely comfortable and uninterrupted.” She explained. “Plus, the last thing I need is her walking in here on me changing in front of my brother’s fake girlfriend.” 

“You know, I liked it better when you just called me your girlfriend.” She whined. Jungeun stood from the chair and walked over to Sooyoung on the bed.

“Fine, The last thing I need is her walking in here on me changing in front of _my_ girlfriend.” She said quietly, her hand holding Sooyoung in place as she placed a gentle kiss on her lips. _She really never did get tired of kissing Sooyoung_.

“Hmm, much better.” Sooyoung kissed her back, nearly getting lost in her completely. Until the door opened and they were scrambling away from each other. 

Jungeun quickly moved towards her closet while Sooyoung just sat on the bed, running a hand through her hair and smiling in the direction of the door. “I was just coming to say goodnight. We had a fun time with you at dinner tonight. Don’t mind my husband.. he’s always like that. So quiet that man.” 

Jungeun didn’t even face her mother right now. The shade of red on her face in that moment would have given her away. “It’s alright. Goodnight Mrs. Kim.” Sooyoung politely said, the door closing shut. The blonde could hear a snicker coming from Sooyoung and she sighed.

“Not funny.” 

“Ehhh it was a little funny.” Sooyoung laughed a little more, laying back onto the bed. “I have to be up kind of early tomorrow. So don’t distract me tonight.” She warned her with a playful manner.

The other girl sat down in her desk chair again, turning to her work. “Didn’t plan to anyway. I have some studying to do..” 

“Will it take long?” 

“I’m honestly not sure.” 

Sooyoung nodded understandingly. “Well don’t worry. I’ll be here.” She exhaled loudly. 

“I know.” 

_**//** _

It’d been about 3 hours now. Sooyoung changed into some sleeping clothes, and she removed her makeup and cleaned her face. She just lay in bed, waiting patiently for Jungeun to finish her studying. She distracted herself by watching Youtube or playing a few phone games. Even going as far as to respond to a few of the 400 unread messages she had on her phone. 

Everyone had fallen asleep besides those two. And the house was pretty quiet now, besides the sound of the tv in her parents room. Her father didn’t like to sleep in silence, and at one point it ran her mother crazy, but she got over it. If anything, now it’s ran Jungeun crazy. Jungeun sighed, closing her book and standing up. She rubbed her eyes, getting into bed with defeat written all over her. Sooyoung turned to her, rubbing her back soothingly as she gave her a peck on the lips. Jungeun smiled the entire time as they stole kisses from each other, giggling whenever they clashed a little too aggressively from their silliness. Sooyoung gazed into Jungeun’s eyes, watching her every move like a hawk. But her eyes were gentle, and as always, Jungeun was the most beautiful person in the world to her. She smiled when Jungeun turned away, the gaze becoming far too much for her to handle. She felt like her heart would fail.

“Why do you always look away?” 

Jungeun sighed, turning back to the woman once she found the courage to. “Because..” She began, “You’re just so damn pretty that it physically _hurts_ to even look at you..” 

“You’re pretty too Jungeun..” 

“Hmm.. compared to you… not really.” 

“Yes you are.” Sooyoung kissed her softly. “You’re beautiful Jungeun.” She complimented, kissing the girl all over and hearing her tiny giggles as she allowed Sooyoung to attack her face as she gave her compliments over and over again. She finally caught her lips again though, sighing with content at the feeling of Sooyoung’s lips on hers once again. 

When Sooyoung pulled away, Jungeun sighed deeply, pulling her hair down onto her face. “What’s the problem?” She questioned, only seeing the blonde locks covering Jungeun’s face.

She sat up, making a groaning sound as she flipped herself over. “I’m going to fail.” Was all she said and Sooyoung raised an eyebrow at her.

“And why is that?” 

“Because believe it or not, human anatomy is actually pretty damn hard.” 

“Well.. I’m very much aware of that..” Sooyoung agreed. “But I have an extra year of knowledge.” She smiled.

Jungeun sat up fully now, facing eye to eye with Sooyoung. “What are you thinking?” 

“Well… I could help you study.” Sooyoung offered.

“Sooyoung…” 

Sooyoung stood up, walking over to her desk and grabbing the book she was studying. “I don’t mind. Really. Besides, you’re my girlfriend, and if you weren’t studying to become a doctor, I’d probably just go and take the damn final for you.” She handed Jungeun the book, sitting beside her. “Now— what exactly were you studying?” 

She mumbled her next words, not really wanting to go into such a gross topic. “A penis… But I’ll just study that tomorrow on my own.” 

“Well.. didn’t know you rolled that way Kim Jungeun.” The older woman teased, receiving a push from her girlfriend. She wasn’t buying it though. She continued on anyway. “Okay. Well, what part of the male reproductive system supports the germ cells that undergo a process to develop into sperm?” 

“I hate this so much…” She sighed. “Those are the seminiferous tubules.” She answered, earning a kiss when she answered correctly. 

“Good job baby.” She complimented, going down the page a bit more. “Alright. Now, what is the name of the part behind the testis and what is its function?” 

Jungeun thought for a moment. “It’s the area where the sperm passes by the uh… epi…. epididymis.” 

“Wow, my girlfriend is so smart.” She kissed her again. At this point, the kisses alone were motivating Jungeun to study and ace this exam. “Okay, now, what is this?” She pointed; and Jungeun looked at her with pleading eyes.

“Do I reallyyy have to say it?” 

“I’ll kiss you again if you do.” She bargained, and Jungeun was left defeated. 

“It’s the… _shaft_.” She mumbled the last part, but just loud enough for Sooyoung to hear and let her free. She immediately received a kiss, her eyes instinctively rolling after because she knew Sooyoung was laughing at the fact she made her say such a childish thing. Human anatomy huh? 

“Okay, that’s enough torturing you with the male reproductive system. Now we move onto the female reproductive system. Ah, my favorite part.” She said with a smile on her face. 

They studied the reproductive organs for some time now, an hour at least, before Jungeun had to move onto the next topic before it got too late, which was the nervous system. It was nearing midnight now. 

“You’re a really smart person Jungeun.” Sooyoung complimented. “Now let’s start from the top, we’ll do a quick little review to make sure you memorized things.” 

“Sooyoung…” 

“Will you study it on your own?” The girl didn’t respond. “Exactly. Come on. I’m helping you. Okay?” 

“Okayyy…” 

“Hmm you seem tired. How should I make this fun?” 

“Kisses worked.” 

“They did. But I think you need a bit more motivation.” She had an idea. She handed Jungeun the book, and the girl looked at her with confusion. But her body froze when she noticed Sooyoung grabbing the hem of her shirt, lifting it up and over her head and tossing it onto the floor. “Hands on studying.” She winked, grabbing the book and placing it beside herself.

“I-I…” Jungeun malfunctioned. Her jaw dropped at the sight in front of her. Sooyoung wore a black sports bra that fit her too well, not to mention her amazing body just right there in front of Jungeun. 

“Focus.” Sooyoung said, as if it was the easiest thing in the world to do. “So we start from the top. Okay? Go.” 

Jungeun needed a moment. Clearing her throat and slowly inching closer to Sooyoung, her heart beating so fast she was sure she’d die right then and there. She reached her hand out, and Sooyoung noticed it was shaking profusely. She gently grabbed it, kissing it gently and placing it on her soft skin, leaving Jungeun breathless once again. She allowed her fingertips to graze her collarbone. 

“Name.” Sooyoung said, bringing her back down to earth.

“Clavicle.. that’s your clavicle. Two bones that um..” She cleared her throat once again, trying to keep her mind focused on the main task at hand. But it was proving to be impossible. “They come together with the sternum and the scapula; which is the shoulder blade.” She spoke firmly, her fingers grazing the skin as she pointed to and from.

“Good.. keep going.” Sooyoung said, releasing her hold on Jungeun’s hand and placing them on her thighs as she allowed Jungeun to freely touch her. Studying. She was helping her study. 

“Clavicle— it’s the collarbone.” She said, and the more she looked the more she remembered just how much she _loved_ Sooyoung’s collarbones. Her fingers lightly traveled between Sooyoung’s chest. “Sternum, the breastbone, protects the organs in your upper torso.” 

“You’re a pro.” Sooyoung softly said, her voice much lower now for some odd reason. It was throwing Jungeun off. Maybe she was just overthinking it all. 

“Pelvis.” She simply said, her fingers pressing against the bone just atop of Sooyoung’s sleep shorts. “It attaches the muscles that move our legs, hips and trunk.” 

When she moved lower, swallowing hard, she felt a hand stopping her. “Now this, this is the good part.” Sooyoung said, her fingertips at the hem of Jungeun’s shirt now. She looked to her for permission, and Jungeun just nodded quickly, mentally kicking herself for coming off so desperate. Once her shirt was removed, Sooyoung moved closer, her fingers tracing the prominent collarbones that belonged to her beautiful girlfriend. She was in awe at the sight, caught in a complete daze. The human body was quite magnificent whenever you got a closer look at it. Jungeun felt nervous under her gaze however, and Sooyoung noticed. 

So she gently kissed her lips, and then kissed her collarbones. Her hand found Jungeun’s lower back as she slowly lifted her head again, looking her in the eyes. “Lattissimus dorsi..” She spoke, referring to the area of her lower back, and then going a tiny bit lower. “Lumbar spine.” 

Jungeun was trying to focus on every word she was saying, truly, but it was a bit hard when Sooyoung had her hands on her lower back, nibbling at her exposed collarbones. Truthfully she felt her body going weak, and if it weren’t for Sooyoung, she’d have fallen back by now. But she held her firmly, trying her absolute best to not leave any marks on the girl’s body. She nearly fainted when she felt her tongue running up her neck, and she was ashamed at how easily she gave her access to it. She felt Sooyoung’s soft hands make their way down her body, landing down at her lower limbs as she said the name of every single body part she could touch.

She gently lay Jungeun down onto the bed, kissing her when she saw how nervous her eyes were. “I’m not going to hurt you.. Promise.” She assured the girl below her, kissing down her body, in some way, innocently. “Illium.. it’s the largest part of the hipbone.. you have really nice hips by the way.” Sooyoung complimented, earning a laugh from Jungeun. It made her smile to see her slightly easing up. But the moment Sooyoung’s hand reached… down _there_ she tensed up.

It wasn’t that she was scared per say.. just nervous. To be fair, there was a hot girl all over her right now seductively relaying the human body to her. It was quite literally a hands on comprehension course. And despite being nervous, she felt too much excitement when her entire lower half was bare enough, as well as her top. Sooyoung slowly followed suit, removing her things too to make her favorite person comfortable. 

To feel Sooyoung’s body that close to her with that much intimacy.. she could die right there and then. Their bodies were entangled as they became one. Sooyoung kissed her softly at first, and then the kiss became a bit more passionate. Teeth and tongue came into play, and Jungeun couldn’t believe she’d gone so long without a feeling like this. It was like fireworks were going off in her brain. It was getting very hard to ignore the thigh that rested in between her legs, and it was becoming even more hard to ignore just how hot her body was getting. 

She wasn’t sure if Sooyoung did it intentionally, but her thigh pressed a bit more against the blonde, and she let out a sound that embarrassed her. “S-Sorry..” She quickly apologized, her face red. Sooyoung lightly chuckled.

“You’re something else.. you know that right?” 

It didn’t take long for things to escalate. As badly as Jungeun tried, she couldn’t keep her hips from moving against the stationary thigh in between her legs. But Sooyoung seemed to be enjoying it, just kissing her and allowing her to do whatever it is she needed. And then it happened, a strangled moan escaped her lips as she hit her peak, her eyes closed shut and her hands gripping Sooyoung’s waist firmly. “I haven’t even touched you yet..” The girl teased.

“Please shut up…” She muttered embarrassingly. It wasn’t her fault Sooyoung had gotten her this way to begin with. She just lay there, not moving as Sooyoung’s warmth radiated off of her body. She gave her some time before she made her way down her perfect body, kissing her inner thighs gently. She could feel Jungeun twitching each time she did it, resulting in her smiling at the effect she had on her. 

She froze when she felt lips somewhere that wasn’t exactly on her.. lips. She huffed out a breath, her fingers gripping the sheets already. “Sooyoung… you can do it.. just do it.” She demanded, and that was all the permission Sooyoung needed. 

She didn’t rush anything though. She still remained calm, and Jungeun found it endearing how Sooyoung’s hands shakily held her thighs, as if she was just as nervous too. It made her feel a little better. Jungeun held her in place, trying her absolute hardest not to make a sound. To be fair, she wanted to live another day to experience this euphoric feeling. She’d never felt anything like it before. It was actually heart stopping, and her heart was beating so fast she could hear it pounding in her ears. 

She was even more embarrassed at how easily Sooyoung maneuvered inside of her. “ _Shit_..” Was all she could say, making Sooyoung smile once again. She held a hand over her mouth, gritting her teeth as she tried to mask the tiny whimpers that left her lips from the pleasure. The sounds muffled and slipping through the tiny gaps of her fingers. She needed to breathe. But even as she took her hands off of her mouth, she felt like she was suffocating and sinking deeper into the bed as her back arched and the heels of her feet dug into the lower back of Sooyoung. She could feel Sooyoung’s hand being gently placed onto her abdomen, as a way to keep her from quite literally floating to heaven from the euphoric feeling she felt, bringing her back down to earth. Calming her as best as she could from her position. 

Jungeun was beautiful, in many many ways. But especially right now. She was quiet at first, surprisingly so, small sounds here and there. She was sure the lip biting Jungeun was doing helped. But it didn’t help for long, because the woman between her legs was just far too good at what she was doing. She felt like she was suffocating the longer Sooyoung used her mouth on her. She truthfully didn’t know how much more she could take of this. It was making her head spin. She was fighting with her endurance and her absolute need and want that she had for Sooyoung. But she wasn’t sure she could hold on much longer, especially since it was her first time.

Her body wasn’t used to the intense pleasure. What she was feeling in that moment, it was unfair to be considered a sin. How could something so blissful be a sin? It just felt far too good to be considered such a thing. 

Her eyes closed moments after she saw Sooyoung travel back up her body to kiss her neck. The woman couldn’t help but to look down, in a trance of some sort as she took in just how perfect Jungeun was. She was so fucking _beautiful_. Her eyes looked down and up her body, taking in the lack of flaws and the constant rise and fall of her bare chest. 

“ _Sooyoung—_.“ Was the last coherent thing she heard from Jungeun. Sooyoung soothingly rubbed her hands on any part of her body she could touch. In return she felt those soft hands running through her red hair as it cascaded around her. She held her in place as she latched her mouth onto Sooyoung’s neck to keep herself from being far too loud in such a quiet home. And then the beautiful woman felt a firm tug in her hair, and a sound that Jungeun wished she could have stopped for the sake of her dignity. She knew Sooyoung would never let this go, ever. She moved about it, her body betraying her as she finally let go, trying to escape Sooyoung’s movements but she was held firmly in place by her body pinning her lower half down. 

Her free hand gripped the sheets tightly, and her body finally landed back onto the bed, the sound of her heartbeat filling her ears. Her body covered in the thinnest layer of sweat, her hair just a little messy and her lips a little swollen from the previous attack on them. Sooyoung kissed her softly up and down her body before landing back on her lips. Throwing in a little tongue too just because she enjoyed it. Jungeun’s eyes remained closed for a bit, before she opened them to see Sooyoung gently caressing her cheek and fixing her hair. Her eyes soft despite the demonic acts she just displayed. When their eyes met again, she smiled softly. 

“You know..” Her thumb gently ran along Jungeun’s cheek. “I’ve seen somewhere on the internet that your eyes actually dilate when you look at someone you love..” 

“Hmm.. is that so?” Jungeun managed to say, her body still trying to process what just happened to it. 

“Mhm.. but that’d just explain why your eyes are always like little black holes in the midst of those brown lenses… Jungeun-ah, do you really find me _that_ attractive?” She smirked, the girl below her smiling as she scoffed. 

“Yes Sooyoung.. you’re the most beautiful person I’ve ever seen.” Her eyes did not even leave Sooyoung’s for one second. Where’d this sudden confidence come from? 

“I think the same way about you.” She smiled, leaning up to kiss her forehead, and due to that, Jungeun gasped.

“Sooyoungie… your neck…” 

“Huh?” 

“I think I got a little carried away..” She watched as her girlfriend stood up, pulling her shirt over her head and walking to the mirror. Her neck was littered with marks.. dark marks. In far too obvious places. 

“I’m praying you’re good at makeup.” Sooyoung laughed, assuring her that it was fine. She grabbed Jungeun’s clothes as well, helping her up so she could get dressed. “Did my lesson help you?” 

Jungeun shyly nodded. “It did.” 

“Good. I’m expecting you to get an A+ on that exam.” 

Jungeun pulled her pants up. “You expect too much out of me.” 

“Hm.. I think I expect just enough.” She lied in the bed, waiting patiently for Jungeun to put her books up and get in bed with her. 

Jungeun lied down as well, facing Sooyoung as they lay in the dark together. The only light illuminating the room came from the moon. They just lay there in silence, looking at each other and stealing kisses every so often. She nearly let out a chuckle as she thought about how the study of the human body had become a rhetoric for love. 

Jungeun bit down on her lips nervously. “You’re my first you know? My first kiss,,, with a girl, my first.. _time_... doing _this_.” She confessed, watching the way Sooyoung’s eyes softened. “I’m most definitely not yours though..” She quietly said that part, unsure if she wanted to hear the confirmation of something she already knew. It was Ha Sooyoung for crying out loud. Of course she wasn’t some loser virgin like she was. 

Sooyoung looked at her with apologetic eyes, playing with her hair as they lay looking at each other face to face. “No…” She said sadly, but she really did wish Jungeun was her first. 

Jungeun giggled, and it made Sooyoung’s heart pump again. “There’s no need to feel bad about it..” She assured, her hand caressing Sooyoung’s soft cheek. 

“If it makes you feel better, I wish you were my first.” 

“Hmm.. it does. A little.” She kissed her, smiling brightly as she lay comfortably under the blankets and closed her eyes. She had a feeling she was going to sleep amazing tonight. “Goodnight Sooyoungie.” 

She kissed her forehead softly. “Goodnight Jungeun.” 

_**//** _

Sooyoung couldn’t quite sleep right away. She lay awake with Jungeun close by her side, sound asleep. She enjoyed seeing the blonde sleeping peacefully beside her, safe and within reach. 

She suddenly heard a sound coming from the backyard, and at first she ignored it, but when it happened again, she made it her mission to go and see what was the cause of it. She peeked out the window, pulling the blind down just a bit, her anxiousness wavering when she spotted Younghoon just pulling a chair up to sit down in. She shook her head, putting on a hoodie and pants and quietly going downstairs. 

She opened the back door and stepped out onto the platform. He jumped at the sound of her arrival, nearly tossing his cigarette until he saw her. He relaxed instantly, sitting back in his chair again. “Hi fake girlfriend.” He said, taking a puff.

“Hi fake boyfriend.” She greeted, pulling up a chair for herself. It was past 1am at this point, going on 2 actually. The only things accompanying them on a late night was the moon, the stars, and the petrifying sound of crickets all around them. “What has you up at this hour?” 

He took a sip of his beer. “I’m always awake at this hour. It’s the only time I have some peace and quiet. The world is asleep.. well, at least Korea is.” 

She understood that entirely. “So your band, are they actually any good?” 

“Yeah. I like to think we are. They have me after all.” He emitted a laugh from the woman beside him. “I’d ask about your team but you’re already making enough headlines for me to just google search my answer.” He pointed out. 

“Yeah. I have a game today actually. Early one.”

“Does it ever get overwhelming? Being a captain and all..?” 

Sooyoung crossed her legs. “It is, sometimes. But especially at first. People don’t really accept you right away. They want you to prove yourself which is fair…” She explained. “Now.. They just look to me for solutions. Gameplans. Input. But I love basketball, so I deal with it all well.” 

“You think you’re gonna go pro?” 

“If I keep at it? Yeah. My stats are pretty good and padded.” She responded, and turned to him shortly after. “You know, you’re the first guy in a while that I talked to that hasn’t completely hit on me.” 

He laughed, nearly choking on the smoke he just blew out. “No. Trust me. In a different universe, I would. But you’re my sister’s girl. I know boundaries. Plus— I don’t need to be getting my ass kicked by some angry 5’2 girl.” 

They both laughed at that. Sooyoung thought about the woman laying in the bed. Hopefully she was still asleep at that moment. “She’s pretty protective.” 

“I would be too. You’re a gem. But you’re protective over her too. I can see that already. It goes both ways. You two have something good going for you.” He suddenly complimented. “Sorry.. this beer is getting to me.” 

“No it’s fine. I get it, and I appreciate it.” She smiled. “She’s a keeper. I’ll take care of you.” 

He hiccuped. “Good. I don’t hit girls, so it’d be very hard to get back at you if you hurt my little sister.” He threatened half jokingly. “She’s fragile. She doesn’t show it, but that’s just how she is. So be gentle with her.” 

“We haven’t really come across any problems yet or anything. We’re pretty much both just focused on school and our hobbies and making time for each other in between any and everything.” She explained to him and he nodded.

“Well, that’s college for you.” 

“How come you gave up on it?” 

“Me? Eh, college isn’t for everyone. For the sake of my mental health, I just didn’t go through with it. Besides, Jungeun has the brains and shit, she’ll make our family look good., until she decides to come out some day or some shit.” He sighed. “Just don’t get why people don’t love their kids unconditionally no matter what you know?” 

Sooyoung sighed, grabbing the beer from his hand. “Yeah.. that’s enough beer for you my friend.” She placed it on her left side, away from him. “But yeah, I get it.” 

He took another puff, blowing the smoke in the opposite direction of Sooyoung. “What about your parents? They know about you? Siblings?” 

“Oh yeah. They do. They were a bit off about it at first but they came around after about a year. My younger brother didn’t give a shit honestly.” 

“Huh— that’s great.” He took another puff, holding the cigarette between his fingers again. “Happy for ya. Maybe one day my parents will suck it up like yours. So my sister can be happy.” 

“Can you promise me something?” 

“We just met and you’re making me promise things.” He said, chuckling lightly.

“When I’m not around— protect her please?” 

“I already do–“

“No. Really, protect her.” She explained. “If this ever gets out, you know, us, it could be bad for her. So, protect her with your life, when I can’t be there to do it.” 

He fist bumped her. “Promise.” He passed the cigarette in her direction and she scrunched her face in disgust. “Puff?” 

She grabbed it from his hand, before throwing it to the ground and crushing it beneath her foot. He laughed in response.

“Hm, you two really are a perfect match.” 

**_//_ **

When Sooyoung awakened that morning, she rubbed her eyes gently before reaching out to her side instinctively. She sat up fully now, relaxing the moment she saw Jungeun was still within range. Just at her desk, most likely getting a few study points in before her exam in an hour. “Don’t worry, I’m still here.” She softly said, highlighting a few notes in her books. Sooyoung let out a relieved sigh, standing up and kissing her cheek. 

“It’s like we’re a domestic couple getting ready for the day.” Sooyoung joked, grabbing a shirt from her bag. “I look a bit unprofessional though.” She pointed out as she walked by a mirror, looking at how much darker the marks had gotten overnight.

“I’m sorry..” Jungeun apologized as she grimaced at the sight. 

“Hm, it’s no worries.” Sooyoung assured, kissing her forehead as she buttoned up the silky white top, leaving a few buttons undone. “I’m gonna get cleaned up.” 

Jungeun smiled as she watched Sooyoung leave the room. She still couldn’t believe last night happened. It was like her brain couldn’t process such an amazing thing had happened to her. And it was Sooyoung who did it… yeah, it’d take her some time to register this all. How’d she get so lucky? Sooyoung was completely infatuated by her and Jungeun was the same for her in return. She really couldn’t believe it. 

When she came back she finally kissed her on the lips. “Brushed my teeth so,” She winked, looking at the marks once again. “Your parents aren’t here like I expected so I think I’ll just rock these on campus today.” 

“Sooyoung…” Her cheeks going red at the revelation. 

“I, unfortunately, have to go, but I will, see you later.” She said each word between warm kisses. “You’re going to ace that exam okay? Don’t doubt yourself so much.” 

Jungeun just stood up, allowing herself to be hugged by Sooyoung and kissed as much as she pleased. “Hm, it’s like you get sexier every day.” 

“I’m wearing a pair of pajamas.” 

Sooyoung laughed and her smile shined so bright Jungeun was afraid she’d have to shield her eyes from it. Her heart raced everytime that smile was directed at her, which it was most of the time. She didn’t think she could handle Sooyoung’s beauty. “Still sexy.” Melting into yet another kiss. “See you later?” 

“Mhm.” 

“Good. Bye my love.” Her hand slipped from Jungeun’s as she left.

_**//** _

“Geez, those are some serious marks.” Bora pointed out, lightly grazing the dark marks that littered Sooyoung’s tan skin. “Didn’t know lil bambi had it in her.” 

Sooyoung laughed, going over some gameplans in her team’s playbook. “I’ve barely been around her parents longer than a day and they’re already unbearable.” She explained. 

“Huh?” 

“I don’t know.. they’re just mean I suppose? A bit condescending? Just mean. Constantly making sly remarks.” She sighed. “Wish I could just take her out of that environment.” 

“Eh, it’s the story of homophobic parents. She’s quite literally stuck until she can afford the mental drainage it comes with when you finally separate yourself from a toxic environment.” Bora explained, laying on the bench beside Sooyoung. “Anyways, I have 2 exams today. Talk about being clamored.” 

“I only have 2 more exams and thankfully they’re only next week. Just a game today and I’ll be free this weekend.” 

“Oh? Free? You know.. I meant to ask you, Sehun’s throwing a party this weekend, did you want to come? You know how much funner parties get when you show up.” She elbowed Sooyoung gently, waiting for a response. But the girl hadn’t even lifted her head, too busy looking into the book.

“Nah. I’m actually taking Jungeun out this weekend. And seeing my mom. Can’t afford to have hangovers.” She simply replied.

“Right…” Bora responded dejectedly. “How is your mom by the way? Still living in another district?” 

Sooyoung slowly lifted her head, turning to Bora before responding quietly. “Yeah. She likes living out there in the countryside. She’s not too big on cities anymore.” 

“I mean I don’t blame her.” 

Sooyoung’s eyes traveled over to the sound of the gym door opening. Her body going numb at the sight of her beautiful girlfriend walking in. Her blonde hair straightened and perfectly cascaded over her shoulders. She wore the cutest green headband that day with her outfit. Bora sat up too, noticing the girl walking in. She was quite literally glowing, more than usual of course. 

“Neitherrr do I.” Sooyoung smiled, before standing up and holding Jungeun’s hand. “I’m taking her to the carnival. But um, have fun at the party. Get rowdy for me huh?.” Sooyoung winked.

Bora just waved at Jungeun, and of course she waved back, letting herself be pulled away by Sooyoung. She smiled when she saw Sooyoung attack her girlfriend with kisses, and the sound of Jungeun’s laugh echoed throughout the gym. 

Their relationship was pure, and she could tell Sooyoung genuinely did like Jungeun. It was nice to see, even if it meant she got to spend less time with her friend. 

Suddenly she heard footsteps coming towards her. Bora jumped, clutching her chest when she saw who it was. “Jesus, where the fuck did you come from?” 

“Oh, I was right over there. I just came from the locker rooms.” Jinsoul explained. “I heard you’re going to a party?” 

“Uh yeah. Sehun’s. He’s just throwing a little house party. But you know little in college terms is always pretty huge.” 

“Well, if it’s okay with you. I’d like to come.” 

“Really?”

“I mean yeah, I have nothing else to do. Especially with exams being over now. I need a drink or two.” 

“Okay.” Bora smiled, watching as Jinsoul walked backwards, nodding her head with confirmation.

_Was she there that whole time?_

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That was a lot. Sorry, but if you made it all the way down here that means you read over 26,000 words of lipves. But I at least hope you enjoyed it.
> 
> Stay safe, take care of yourselves. See you again hopefully very soon ❤️


	3. 3 (Part 1)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I think I wrote too much. I had to split it because after I had written, I noticed I wrote nearly 40k words... so sorry if the part 1 cut off is a bit awkward, I promise I will update part 2 soon.
> 
> No need for trigger warnings anymore. I think if you read my stuff you know things can be a bit intense and such. 
> 
> Also, I am a bit lazy, over 20k word chapters.. its hard to keep up with timelines(i try to make it connect at least and make sense) but just know, by the end of part 2, they’ll have been together officially for 1 YEAR. 
> 
> Take care. And I hope you enjoy.

* * *

“When you said you were coming back in a month, I didn’t expect you to show up at my house on the same day.” Jungeun playfully complained, letting her closest friend hug her tightly. Truthfully, she was glad Jiwoo was back. It was nice to have a close friend back in her reach. And someone other than schoolmates to hang out with. Jiwoo walked into the home fully now, observing the area.

“Oh! No one is home?” She questioned and Jungeun shook her head in response. 

“Yerim just left recently to go to the store with Younghoon. She wanted this new bag that was being released by Chanel.” Jungeun scoffed.

“Eh? You have Chanel money Jungeun-ah.. where’s my Chanel bag?” She questioned slyly with a mitigated smirk. 

“I wish I had Chanel money. Maybe once I become a successful doctor I’ll buy you all the Chanel bags you want.” She smiled.

“Sounds like a proposal..” Jiwoo playfully responded, running up the stairs to Jungeun’s room. 

Jungeun just rolled her eyes, following right behind her slowly. She walked into the room to see Jiwoo laid out on the bed, sighing contently. Jungeun sat in her desk chair and turned towards the girl on her bed. “So.. when do I get to meet her?” The bright girl suddenly asked, smiling at her with closed eyes. 

“Meet who?” 

“You know… the girl that makes you smile like a teenage girl?” She winked, hopping over to her and into her lap. Jungeun put in the effort to push her off, but it was pointless. Plus Jiwoo just held on tighter, resulting in nearly cutting off her airway. So she gave up, slumping into the chair. 

“I don’t know. I’m honestly afraid for you two to meet.” 

“What? Why?! You think I’m going to embarass you?!” 

Jungeun finally succeeded in pushing her off, watching as the girl scrambled to find her footing as she moved to the bed. “No. But both of you can’t shut your mouth for longer than 10 seconds. It’d give me a headache that I don’t think I’m ready for.” She admitted playfully, although it was entirely true.

Jiwoo huffed out, crossing her arms. “Come on! It’d be so fun.. I’m sure she would like me.” 

Jungeun closed her eyes as she lay down on her bed. Her face against the cool sheets. “Everyone likes you Jiwoo.” Which was true. It was hard not to, and if you didn’t, there was clearly something wrong with you deep down. “I’ll see when she’s free okay.” 

“Yes!” Jiwoo cheesed hard, throwing up a cute fist pump.

“But not today. She’s practicing for a championship game this weekend.” 

“Whatttt? Championship game so soon?” 

“Well the season has been going on for some time now.. but I’m pretty happy about it. Sooyoung seems really exhausted and down these days..” 

“Oh?” 

“Yeah.. but she keeps telling me that she’s fine. I think she’s just exhausted from the school work and also the stress of being a team captain.” 

Jiwoo sat down beside her, before rubbing her back soothingly. “That’s probably the case. You shouldn’t worry too much, but if you do, you should talk to her. It seems like you two have good communication in your relationship.” 

Jungeun gave a slight smile at the kind words. She didn’t miss the compliment about her relationship with Sooyoung. They did communicate very well. It was probably just one of her favorite things about Sooyoung. She never let a problem arise between them and she fixed things as quickly as possible. She was quite mature. More mature than Jungeun honestly expected. Their first few meetings Sooyoung displayed absolute immaturity, but she was headstrong and she knew what she wanted. “We do.” Jungeun replied, before her eyes opened immediately. “That’s when you can meet her!” Jungeun said excitedly. 

“Huh?” 

“At her game. You can come with me when I go and watch.. I’ll introduce you to my other friends as well. They’re all pretty nice to me. I’m sure they’d like you too.” She explained and Jiwoo couldn’t keep herself from smiling.

“Wow, that sounds fun actually. I’ve never really been at a college basketball game… or any game for that matter.” She thought for a moment, but her smile immediately had risen back onto her features. “I can’t wait!”

They sat and talked a bit longer. Just bringing up things they’d experienced while away from each other. Jiwoo mentioned how a few girls had a crush on her. It was silly to her, she hardly paid them any mind though, since she was there for a different reason. Not to mention she wouldn’t be there long enough to entertain and lead them on. Jungeun mentioned the numerous dates Sooyoung had taken her on, and the cute gifts she’d get her. They put a stop on the flowers, so she tended to buy her smaller things, like books (since she enjoyed reading and studying) and clothing here and there. Jungeun wasn’t too big on shoes so she left that out. She’d also bought her a few new earrings to compliment the ones she wore daily. 

Jiwoo sighed happily, resting her face cutely in the palm of her hands with her feet up behind her. “She’s whipped for you.” 

Jungeun just laughed. A few months ago she probably would’ve denied that fact. But it was not much of a surprise anymore and it wasn’t really something that could be hidden. Especially the way she spoke about how Sooyoung spoiled her any chance she got. Dates, gifts and just simply being the best person ever to her. She also explained the whole beard deal they had going on. Jiwoo found it all hilarious, although she had some concerns as well. “I mean.. isn’t it a bit weird though? Having her come over and having to pretend to be your brother’s girlfriend?” 

Jungeun nodded. “Yeah.. it’s super weird, and honestly, I try not to get heated over the display of slight affection they have to give. But it’s okay, and Sooyoung was the one who came up with the idea anyway.. I just followed. Anything to get my parents off my back.” She explained with a sad laugh.

“I’m sorry..” Jiwoo sadly apologized. She hated the situation Jungeun was in. She wished people could be more understanding and accepting. But that was nearly impossible sometimes in this country despite younger minds being more open. Older people weren’t too open minded however, especially the heavily religious ones. Like Jungeun’s family. “But you know, I’m home now. So if anything happens you know where to come.” She reassured her. 

Jungeun smiled softly at her words. Typical Jiwoo, always being caring and helpful whenever she could. “I find it quite silly too but they’re gullible. And for some strange reason they believe Younghoon most of the time over me.”

“Does Yerim know?” 

Jungeun laughed. “Of course she knows. The girl can’t stay out of anyone’s business for the life of her. But we don’t talk about it, and she doesn’t treat me any differently. I always wonder if she has questions though..” 

“Maybe you should talk to her. You’re her big sister.. I’m sure she’s waiting for you to actually say something to her.” The other girl encouraged with a lighthearted voice. “Jungeun-ah… not everyone is out to get you. You know?”

* * *

Sooyoung sat across from her brother as they waited for the dessert that they ordered. This was a restaurant their mom used to take them to when she was able to. It was local and they pretty much knew mostly everyone that worked there, even though over the years they had a newer person every few months. The original employers were still there however, and that’s all that mattered. Sunwoo and Sooyoung weren’t very close in age, but they did mostly everything together before she went off to college. Their mother getting sick brought them closer together than anything though. 

They ordered the triple chocolate cake, a chocolate cake with chocolate mousse and chocolate syrup topped with chocolate ice cream. She realized as she got older it was getting a bit difficult to consume such a thing. Not to mention she was a bit healthier now due to sports. They planned to visit their mother in the hospital after this. 

“How are the singing lessons coming along?” 

Sunwoo wiped his mouth before speaking, resulting in Sooyoung laughing at the mess he was making all over his face. “Good. My vocal coach said I sound a lot better these days. I stopped going for a few months because…” 

“Yeah.” Sooyoung understood immediately, not even pushing further on the topic. “Well my championship game is in 4 days. You coming?” 

“If the schedules don’t clash for once, I guess I could make some time for you.” He joked. 

She rolled her eyes and said, “Whatever.” She checked the time on her phone, and was pleased to see a message from Jungeun, a smile appeared on her face within seconds. Sunwoo noticed it. It warmed his heart to see that his sister was happy and content, despite what was happening around her and what _had_ happened to her. He admired how strong she was and how she kept her head on her shoulders for the both of them. When their mother first got diagnosed, it was Sooyoung and their father taking charge, and when he was out on business it was Sooyoung. Taking her to get chemo and to multiple doctors all over the country for treatment plans. 

She was there as much as she could be considering how busy she was with school and just life as a young adult in general. Surely, Sooyoung _did_ have it all. Flashy things, a million dollar smile, charisma, an amazing personality and a drive that inspires everyone around her. But she was fragile in ways not many people knew. Not even her own girlfriend knows, and the ones before especially didn’t know. The only person he could think of who had probably seen Sooyoung slightly upset was Heejin, and the more he thought about it, he hadn’t even seen her do more than a few tear ups. 

He remembered how many times she’d defend him against their parents about his future career choices, they were especially upset with him at one point when they noticed he hadn’t wanted to go through with college before even trying. But she didn’t care, she supported him still and whenever they’d have something to say she jumped to his defense. “ _Would you rather him be happy and content with his life choices or miserable and full of hate because you forced him to do something he isn’t passionate about?”_

He smiled remembering small things like that. His attention was caught by his sister speaking to the waiter, she calmly asked for the check and pulled out her wallet. He reached over, placing his hand gently atop of hers and lowered it. “I’ll pay.” He simply said, reaching into his jacket and pulling out his own wallet. 

“Hm, can’t say I’m complaining.” She smiled, but she thanked him immediately after. 

As the woman came back with the check, he dropped $100 on an $50 meal, signing the receipt. “Ready?” He stood up, reaching out to help his sister from her seat. They left the restaurant side by side and walked to the house where their parked cars were. They didn’t mind walking to this place, it was only about a 8 minute walk, and probably less if you weren’t talking and getting distracted like they were. 

“So when do we get to meet the lucky girl?” 

Sooyoung chuckled at that. “ _I’m_ the lucky girl.” She corrected, before smiling to herself even more. “And I’m not sure honestly.. I haven’t told her yet.” 

“Not again Sooyoung…” Sunwoo responded disapprovingly. “You know it’s not good to hide things like this from people. I understood before with your last girlfriend but this one, she’s different.. You told me that, and I can tell. You have a different glow whenever you speak about her.” 

“I just don’t want people to see me differently.. they’ll treat me like a fucking puppy left on a street.” 

“And they’ll treat you like one even more if something happens.. because they couldn’t help you in such a crucial time.” He explained. “I know you’re all high and mighty, but I know you. And I know that holding this all in…? Suffering alone? It’s not good for you.” 

“I’ve been doing just fine.” 

“Have you?” He questioned. “Because fucking everything that walks and drinking away your problems isn’t _fine_ Sooyoung.” 

She glared at him, before walking faster ahead of him. “I’m not doing this with you. I’m here for mom. If I wanted a fucking therapist, I’d get one.” The bite in her tone was enough to nearly make him freeze up. But he swallowed his fear down, following behind her anyway. He didn’t say much after that, and he especially didn’t say anything on the car ride to the hospital. Sooyoung was still ignoring him at this point, but she could feel those stupid worried stares from him the entire time she was in his presence. 

Once they parked, she walked ahead of him again. But before she could reach the double doors, she felt a hand grab her wrist. “Look… I’m sorry—“ 

“I know.” Was all she said before walking inside.

Sooyoung hated hospitals. The smell, the waits, the uncomfortable seating. All of it. Most of all, the sick and injured people. She hated seeing the suffering inside of the hospital, especially when it was someone she loved. They went through the front desk and the sign in, before finding their way to their mother’s room. Just as Sunwoo was about to open the door, Sooyoung stopped in her tracks. He turned to her, seeing a look of bewilderment on her face. “You okay?” 

Sooyoung quickly blinked her eyes, feeling the tears welling up in them as she quickly made them vanish. She turned away from the window of the room her mother was in. “Yeah. I just need to grab something. I forgot it in the car.” She lied, quickly walking off, as she wiped at her eyes. 

She felt herself panicking the longer she stayed inside of the hospital, her feet traveling quicker than she realized to get out of the building. She quickly unlocked her car doors, got inside and sat in silence for briefly 10 seconds. Her hands gripped the wheel firmly before she let out a huff, and suddenly she was screaming. Screaming at the top of her lungs before she broke down crying. Tears running down her face and her nose running. Her fingers growing red from the increased pressure on them. 

It seemed like she was crying for hours when really it was only two minutes. Ending with stifled sobs and releasing her grip on the steering wheel. Her face quickly straightened up and she grabbed a few napkins from the glove compartment, wiping away her tears. She fixed herself up and went back inside, finding the room once again and stepping inside. Her mother had gotten much worse, compared to the last time she’d seen her. She was in denial. Her mother had her eyes closed, sleeping peacefully.

“The doctors said she wasn’t breathing on her own last night.. but she’s better today.” Sunwoo informed, his hand holding his mother’s. “Dad is coming back into town tomorrow, his flight was cancelled..” 

Sooyoung sighed deeply, before taking another look at her mother with sadness. 

**_LAST MONTH_ **

Sooyoung laughed at something her mother said, they’d talked about how Sooyoung had gotten into trouble at school once for breaking a girl’s wrist. Her mother explained how she was in shock at someone like Sooyoung getting into such trouble. Her father was more angry however. He had a thing for pristine images. 

Sooyoung stood up, kissing her mother on the forehead. “You seem to be getting better Omma.” Sooyoung said. It was true, her appearance was much better, she’d put on some weight and her color had come back better than ever. She held Sooyoung’s hand and smiled at her. 

Suddenly the door was opened, and two doctors stepped into the room. Sooyoung watched as they flooded in. It was just her and Sunwoo by her mother’s bedside. “Doctor..?” Sooyoung questioned as they looked at the three of them sadly. 

“We have your mother’s test results back..” He explained, standing at the end of the bed. “The cancer has spread even more.. We thought the chemo would help but it seems to be doing not much of anything. It’s spread towards her spinal area too.” 

Sooyoung’s heart dropped. She didn’t think she could feel this gut wrenching feeling again. It hurt too much. She felt her mother grip her hand tighter. “So what are you saying?”

“Well firstly, we need to treat the area around the spine. The pressure on those nerves could cause paralysis.” 

“And secondly?” She questioned.

The doctor hesitated to speak again. “Secondly, the operation could possibly give her another 2 to 3 months.” 

Sooyoung immediately stood up. “What do you mean another 2 to 3 months?” She aggressively stood in front of the doctor, Sunwoo quickly stood up as well, walking over to him with crossed arms. 

“That’s the longest we can give her.. the chemo isn’t helping. It’s just making her weaker. We’re going to stop the chemo rounds after this one today. And we’ll release her from the hospital within 3 days.” 

“So you’re throwing her out? And what? She’ll die whenever? Are you sure there’s nothing else you can do? Any other treatment plans we can do? _Anything_?” She questioned frantically.

“I’m sorry Ms. Ha. But we gave all of our resources and tried every option we possibly could. We’re simply out of options… I’m sorry.” Sooyoung scoffed, turning away and to her mother with sad, defeated eyes.

“It’s okay.” She reassured Sooyoung. “I’ll be okay.” 

_**PRESENT TIME** _

“She looks better.” Sunwoo pointed out as they stood outside of their mother’s room. “Even if it’s temporary.” 

“This is fucked up..” Sooyoung said angrily. “Just waiting around for her to die.. I can’t …” 

“I know.. it is fucked up. But we’ll get through this together okay? We made it this far… you can’t give up on her now. She _needs_ us.” 

“No what she needs is rest.” Sooyoung whispered. “She’s exhausted. It’s heartbreaking… Look— I gotta go. You’re staying here until day comes right?” 

“Yeah.” 

“Call me if she wakes up tomorrow okay? Or just call me.. for updates. Or if you need anything.” She said, hugging him. He quickly hugged her back. 

“Take care Sooyoung.” He watched as she walked off.

* * *

Jungeun opened the door to see Sooyoung standing there. The taller woman didn’t even hesitate to press her lips against Jungeun’s. She missed her.. needed her actually. Both. 

Jungeun quickly pulled away. “ _Sooyoung_ , you can’t just… kiss me here. My parents—“

“Aren’t home. The driveway is empty.” She pointed out, letting herself in as she kissed her again. “I missed you.”

They both could hear footsteps coming down the stairs, they belonged to Younghoon. “Huh, my fake girlfriend is cheating on me with my sister.” He jokingly said, grabbing his keys off the stand by the door. He had his guitar on his back with a bright smile. “I have a gig to get to. Yerim needs to be picked up from her friend’s in about an hour. So don’t get too distracted.” He winked, patting Sooyoung on the shoulder before stepping out.

Sooyoung slowly turned to Jungeun with a smirk. “A house to ourselves.” She pointed out, pulling Jungeun closer by her hips. Jungeun hated how dreamy she was, how she instantly melted close to her body. The warmth and her scent and those extremely soft hands that always found their way to her skin. Sending chills up and down her spine. She let Sooyoung kiss her, gently capturing her lips with hers, melting against them and finding it hard to think about anything. 

Their teeth bumped at one point, and they stopped and laughed at it. Sooyoung just smiled at the woman in front of her. She was beautiful. It was so hard to explain her beauty other than saying she was unreal. Like a goddess of some sort from another universe. Jungeun just smiled shyly, dragging her up the stairs and to her room. They went back to kissing, gentle at first, and then they grew hungrier. Jungeun couldn’t explain the euphoric feeling of Sooyoung’s hands running through her hair, and her body pressed against hers. And then…. They were panting, finding their bearings. Jungeun quickly scrambled to grab her clothes, her beautiful back on display as she pulled on a shirt. 

“You’re beautiful.” Sooyoung said, as she grabbed her own shirt, pulling it down over her head. “Like.. really, really beautiful.” 

“You seem shocked.” 

“I don’t think I’ll ever get used to it. Seeing you. Knowing you’re all mine.” 

“All yours huh?” 

“Mhm.” Sooyoung smiled, kissing her neck gently as she held her from behind. Jungeun just looked in the mirror, her eyes on Sooyoung as the taller girl rested her head on her shoulder. She loved being held by the woman. They stood there like that for a moment, before she heard Sooyoung’s soft voice. “Hey I’m.. I need— I want… would you like to meet my mom?” She managed to ask, her voice a little shaky.

Jungeun turned to her with wide eyes, full of excitement and also a hint of worry. “Y-You want me to meet your mom?” 

Sooyoung managed to smile. “Well she uh— she’s been wanting to meet you for a while actually.. I just never got around to it.” 

“Really? Wow… Um, sure. I mean, when?” 

“I’ll have to find a time where she isn’t busy.” Sooyoung said quickly. “But yeah, yes.”

Jungeun kissed her softly, and Sooyoung’s eyes closed as she felt those soft lips on hers yet again. “Okay.” The blonde woman quietly said.

* * *

“I kind of miss school. I at least went out consistently and not just here every once in a while.” Exy pointed out, holding Eunseo’s hand. Jungeun walked beside them. “Hey, when's the airhead supposed to be showing up?” 

“She had something to do first. She should be here soon.”

“Good. I kind of don’t like the idea of you looking like a 3rd wheel here. It’s giving bad vibes.” Exy pointed out.

“Well Sooyoung has never been on time for most things.” Eunseo pointed out. “Let’s grab some popcorn before we get on some rides.” 

_**2 HOURS EARLIER** _

Sooyoung walked inside with apple juice and a salad from the hospital cafeteria. “You know— I could buy you something from outside of here.. I’m sure you’re tired of eating this crap.” She said to her mother, placing it down on the mobile table in front of her. 

“...No. I’ve gotten a bit used to it now. You end up in here so much it becomes like your home.” She explained. “Shouldn’t you be going somewhere? You know.. that little date with your girlfriend?” 

“Mom.. it’s not a date. We’re hanging out with friends. That’s all.” Sooyoung laughed, she drank some of the apple juice before handing it back to her mom. “She wants to meet you. I was thinking maybe tomorrow.. It's the day before my game day.” 

“Oh? Your game? The championship? That came quickly.” She mentioned, eating the salad in front of her.

“Yes. The championship. I’m going to win it for you.” Sooyoung smiled, running her thumb along the older woman's hand. 

“I’m very proud of you Sooyoung. In case I haven’t told you in a while.” She smiled. “My talented, brilliant girl.” 

Sooyoung smiled at her as well. “Eat up. The doctors said you haven’t had anything at all today.. you were feeling sick they said.” 

“Oh just the usual nausea.” She laughed, coughing right after. “It’s nothing too extreme. Don’t worry.” 

“I always worry. I tell you that all of the time.” Sooyoung said. It was hard not to. Her mother was terribly sick and she woke up everyday thinking she’d get that terrible phone call that she was gone. “Eat.” 

“Okay mom.” Her mother playfully said, making sure to eat for her daughter, so that she wasn’t scolded again. 

After her mother had eaten, her father showed up again. He’d gotten there as soon as he could the night before. Arriving at 3am, although the event was around midnight. Sooyoung barely saw her father other than a few video calls here and there. She wished he’d just quit his job, it wasn’t like he needed to be there all of the time anyway. He had the money he needed to comfortably live at this point. But he was greedy, like most rich men. Sooyoung sighed to herself. 

“Have I ever disappointed you?” She heard her mother ask, and her head snapped in her direction.

“Um.. doesn’t everyone’s parents?” 

Her mother shook her head. Moving the table away from her bed. “Well, I’d like to apologize. For disappointing you. I wish I could go back in time and do things differently. To be a better mother… especially considering—“ She stopped, seeing Sooyoung squinting in her direction. “I just wish I was better.” 

Sooyoung moved over to the bed, sitting down in it and pulling her mom in. She hugged her as best as she could considering the cords and plugs that were going in and out of her mother. She kissed her cheek. 

“You’re the best mom anyone could ever ask for.” 

_**//** _

When Sooyoung arrived, she looked around the carnival after Jungeun told her where they were. She had to pass a bunch of idiotic teenagers before she saw the blonde hair that stole the show anywhere she went. She was pleased with Jungeun’s outfit. A cute red plaid crop top with some jean shorts and converses. 

She walked over to the girl slowly as she was occupied watching her friends on a ride in front of her. She suddenly felt warm arms wrapped around her body and an even warmer body to accompany it. She knew it was Sooyoung just from that signature perfume she wore. “Sorry I’m late.” She said, kissing her exposed shoulder. “I was visiting my mom.” 

“Hm. Mama's girl. Nothing wrong with it.” Jungeun teased. “I’m still meeting her tomorrow right?” 

“Well unless you’ve gotten cold feet then, yes.” Sooyoung teased, standing beside her now as they watched their friends getting off the ride. “She’s excited.” 

“I am too.” Jungeun said, reaching for Sooyoung’s hand, intertwining their fingers. 

“You finally made it superstar.” Eunseo said, fist bumping the red haired woman. Exy waved at her, before turning back to Jungeun. 

“So.. you big on rides?” Exy questioned, looking directly at Sooyoung. Jungeun stifled a laugh, noticing her friend was at least _trying_ to be nice. 

“Yeah. I am. I don’t have my nausea patches today though. So I think I’ll just stay on the ground tonight.” She explained.

“A basketball player with motion sickness?” 

“More likely than you think.” She simply replied. “But I can win that basketball contest over there. I’ve been needing to practice before the big game anyway.” She winked, holding Jungeun’s hand tightly and tugging her along. They waited in line for their turn and she genuinely cringed at how some people were shooting the ball. 

The next person in line had better skills than the one before him at least. The setup was 2 courts, so two players at a time going at it for the prize. But after the two went, she wouldn’t have someone to go against. “Damn it.” She muttered under her breath. The guy on her side won, and he picked a cute brown teddy bear for his girlfriend who waited and cheered for him. When she spotted Sooyoung he let out a chuckle.

“A girl playing basketball?” He did a thumbs down motion. “Maybe you should go over there and play the little water gun game. Maybe get your cute friend a gift too.” 

Sooyoung turned to Jungeun and then back to the guy. She pointed over to the other line, “Go over there.” He scoffed, but did it anyway. Jungeun was a bit uneasy at what was happening at that moment. But she stayed out of the way, but not until after she was some moral support for Sooyoung. “I’m ready.” She said to the guy that was managing the courts. He turned to the other guy who also gave him the ready.

Another employee ran back to the court, one for Sooyoung, and another for the jackass. “Go!” 

That was the last thing Sooyoung heard before everything around her was muffled. She made every shot, the guy beside her scrambled to keep up. His girlfriend went from enthusiastic to just embarrassed for him. But mainly because he talked shit beforehand and now he was getting his ass handed to him. Sooyoung ended with 25 points and the guy had only 10. He huffed out when he watched the buzzer go off. 

The guys on the court narrating everything added salt to the wounds. Basically rubbing it in that the guy got his ass beat by a girl. Sooyoung walked over to the area with the prizes, picking up a cute stuffed owl plush. She walked back over to Jungeun and handed it to her, kissing her softly. “Hey you’re that chick right? Ha Sooyoung? One of the best players in the country. I expected you to beat that guy’s ass.” 

“I am. Nice to meet you.” She smiled, and she was blindsided by the man walking over to her.

“Good game. At first I was ashamed by the fact I lost to a girl in front of an attractive one. But now I’m more bothered by the fact I lost to a dyke and her dyke girlfriend.” Before he could even say anything else, he felt a fist against his jaw, knocking him to the floor.

Jungeun quickly held Sooyoung back. “Baby, come on. Let’s go okay? Don’t give him the time of day.” She pulled at Sooyoung, tugging her away from the guy who was still on the ground holding his jaw. She could see how aggravated Sooyoung was. She held onto her, placing the plush down onto a stand beside them. She kissed her softly. “Sooyoung.. you can’t let people like that get to you.” 

“He only got to me because he involved you in it. I can handle dickheads being dickheads to me. But not to you… I won’t allow it.” Sooyoung sternly spoke. 

Jungeun didn’t even know what to say and she knew Sooyoung was sure of what she meant. There wasn’t any changing her mind. “Okay….. okay… let’s just go and have some fun okay?” 

_**//** _

Sooyoung had quickly gotten her excitement back again. Jungeun was even happier seeing Exy warming up to Sooyoung. They were playing a game where they shot water at a hole and made their horse ride faster. Sooyoung won, but Exy wasn’t too far behind. Sooyoung walked ahead with Eunseo, whilst Jungeun stayed behind with Exy. “Warming up to her huh?” 

“I suppose she’s not so bad after all.” Exy admitted. 

“I told you so.” Jungeun said, moving closer to the taller woman. “I’m meeting her mom tomorrow.” 

“Ah. So you’re getting married now.”

“What the fuck?” Jungeun questioned, pushing Exy away. The taller woman laughed, and Jungeun felt her heart skip a beat when Sooyoung turned around briefly to see what was happening. She smiled at her, before turning back around to continue talking to Eunseo.

“I was just messing around. That’s a big step you know. Gay girls meeting the family and all. She’s pretty serious about you. I guess she has my trust now.” 

“Is it bad that I’m nervous?” 

Exy chuckled. “I think It’d be bad if you weren’t. But you’ll be fine. As long as Sooyoung’s mom isn’t anything like her, then yeah you should be.” 

“Stop.” Jungeun warned. “You were doing good.” 

“Sorry. It’s deeply ingrained in me. So, how long has it been now? You two being a thing? An official one..” 

“Umm.. 5 months next week.” 

“Impressive. The honeymoon phase is always the best phase.” 

“It feels like a honeymoon everyday since we’ve been together.” She admitted. “Exy I’m serious.. she’s perfect. I mean, even now she can be quite unbearable at times… that _ego_. But it’s endearing to me now. I’ve grown to love it. And she treats me amazingly, I can’t lie about that.” 

“Okay, cupid shot you extremely far up your ass and there is no cure for that.” Exy said, pretending to be disgusted by the mushiness. “I’m happy for you, needless to say. Like actually, really happy for you. You deserve to have someone that cares for you.” 

“Thank you Exy.” 

Exy looked up and spotted Sooyoung standing a little further ahead, waiting for Jungeun. “Now go.” She pointed ahead. “I think your Ms. Perfect is tired of me keeping you hostage back here with me.” 

Jungeun looked up, like always, her heart fluttered at the sight of Sooyoung. Standing there waiting for her, her hands in her pockets as she smiled at her, waiting patiently for Jungeun to come to her. “Yours too.” Was all she said, before walking over to Sooyoung. When she had gotten closer, she saw Sooyoung put her hand out, waiting for it to be held by her girlfriend. 

“Missed me?” Jungeun asked, seeing that signature smirk on Sooyoung’s face. 

“Always.” She kissed her, holding Jungeun in her arms as they watched the fireworks happening above them. It was peaceful, and despite her ears ringing from the loud sounds, but that didn’t matter. Her head rested comfortably in Sooyoung’s chest, and her eyes looked up at the sky painted by pretty colors. She felt soft lips pressed against the crown of her head. 

And she felt happy, that was all she felt when it came to Sooyoung. _Happiness_. 

_**//** _

“I should start getting paid to drive you around in my very expensive car.” Sooyoung said, walking Jungeun to her front door. 

“Or you could just stop driving me around.” 

“Now where’s the fun in that?” Sooyoung winked. “I’ll come and pick you up tomorrow? Around uhhh, 2?” 

“Perfect.”

“Great.” Sooyoung smiled, quickly pecking her lips. “Dress casual. It’s nothing fancy.” 

“But it’s important. I want to make a good first impression.” 

Sooyoung laughed, fixing Jungeun’s hair. “Trust me, I’ve already done that enough for you. They’re just excited to finally meet the girl that makes me crazy.” She placed both hands onto Jungeun’s head, pulling her in awkwardly just to kiss her forehead. Jungeun laughed at her silliness. “Goodnight my love. I’ll text you when I get home.” 

“Okay. Goodnight.” She watched and made sure Sooyoung had gotten into the car safely. And when she did, she quietly shut the front door, locking it as well. When she turned around, Yerim was standing in the kitchen doorway, staring right down the hall at her.

“So that’s her..” She quietly said, and Jungeun cleared her throat.

“Huh?” 

Yerim rolled her eyes at her sister's fake confusion. “Your girlfriend.” She bluntly said. “She’s pretty. Aesthetically it’s a good match, you two.” 

“Yerim..” 

“I don’t care Jungeun. I just wish you weren’t so afraid to tell me.. do you not trust me or something?” 

Jungeun used her hands, gesturing for Yerim to quiet down a little. “It’s not that Yerim.. I was just— It’s fucking scary okay? I trust you, completely. I’m just—“ 

“Scared.” Yerim completed the sentence. “I get it. It’s just.. you told Younghoon _and_ Jiwoo.. I guess I was just feeling a little left out.” 

Jungeun walked over to Yerim, pulling her into a tight hug. She hadn’t let go either, and truthfully, Yerim was surprised by the display of affection. It wasn’t really like Jungeun. “Whoa.. this girl is really flipping you inside out..” She mentioned, and Yerim felt a hand gently smack her arm. They both smiled brightly, and went upstairs for bed. 

_**//** _

“Where are you going?” 

“To hang out with friends.” 

“Do you know when you’ll be back? Your aunt is coming over for dinner.” Her mother questioned. 

Jungeun caught her brother rolling his eyes from behind their mother. “No, I don’t know when I’ll be back. But I’m sure I’ll be back in time for dinner.”

“Okay good. Could you pick up some beef on the way back? I don’t have time to get it. I have to go downtown today.” 

“...Sure..” Jungeun sighed. “I gotta go, I’m already late as it is.” 

“Maybe you should wake up when your alarms go off instead of snoozing them.” Younghoon pointed out, and Jungeun glared at him from across the room.

“And Younghoon—“

“Hm?” He responded, without lifting his head from his phone.

“Invite Sooyoung over as well.” The two siblings turned to each other in disbelief at the random request from their mother. Younghoon looked apologetic for the most part, but there wasn’t much he could do at times. “We haven’t seen her in almost 2 weeks. Is she doing okay?” 

“I’ll have to see if she’s available. She’s a busy girl, but she’s doing fine.” 

“Well if you can get her to come, that’d be greatly appreciated.” 

“Got it.” He said, rolling his eyes and leaving the kitchen. Jungeun looked down at her phone, receiving a text from Sooyoung that said she was outside. Jungeun quickly said goodbye and left, shoving her brother out of the way as well. 

“Asshole.” He jokingly said, watching as she smiled at him and left in a hurry.

Once she got into the car, she was pleased by the sight of Sooyoung. She was wearing a silky baby pink top, with khakis to compliment it. She couldn’t help but notice the expensive gold watch that perfectly went with her alluring tanned skin. “You seem in a hurry.” Sooyoung said, giving her a peck on the lips. 

“Yeah my mom is just.. a hassle sometimes. Let’s get out of here before she sees me with you.” Jungeun warned.

_**//** _

The entire ride, Jungeun could see how antsy Sooyoung was. She nervously tapped her fingers against the steering wheel, and she noticed her leg bouncing up and down as well. Her eyes were going batshit most of the time. Looking at everything with an unsettling look on her face. “Are you okay?” 

Sooyoung turned to her and gave a quick reassuring smile. “Yeah I’m fine. I’m fine.” She smiled, placing her hand on Jungeun’s thigh, gripping it gently. Jungeun just figured she was just as nervous as herself. Which was comforting in a way. It was a big deal to the both of them, and her friends were right about it being a big step. 

She didn’t think houses could get any more gigantic than the one Sooyoung had. But she was proven wrong when her girlfriend pulled into the driveway of her parents residence. The second she pulled up, she saw a boy step outside wearing a black t-shirt with some jeans. He resembled Sooyoung. “Ready?” 

Jungeun nodded, and they proceeded to get out of the car. “Took you long enough.” Sunwoo complained, hugging his sister. She hugged him back, and he smiled at Jungeun, instantly giving her his full attention. “Sunwoo. I’m Sooyoung’s brother. Younger… but bigger brother.” He smiled, and she was amazed at how they both smiled the same. Except Sooyoung’s hit a little differently. But it was still pretty to look at. 

“Jungeun.” She introduced herself, placing her hand in his as he shook it. 

“Nice to finally meet you Jungeun.” He smiled, before hearing his sister clearing her throat. “Oh right— let’s go inside.” 

Sooyoung held Jungeun’s hand as she walked ahead of her, guiding the smaller girl throughout the home. Just like Sooyoung's, the floor was marble. White shining marble at that. The walls were brown however, a wood like color. There were family photos all throughout the home, and Sooyoung’s face was plastered all over. Especially ones of her on a basketball court, and a few pictures of her younger self too. Jungeun’s favorite picture was probably the one of Sooyoung holding a trophy and kissing it as she stood in front of a white bricked wall. 

They sat in the living room for some time, and Sunwoo excused himself, and she could see Sooyoung’s entire demeanor change. The nervousness had returned, and Jungeun quickly held her hand to calm her. The look Sooyoung gave her was full of certainty. It didn’t ease her nerves entirely, but it helped in some way. “It’ll be okay.” She smiled softly, and Sooyoung nodded, although she didn’t seem so sure. And suddenly she heard a woman’s voice, coming from the hall. She turned in the direction of the sound, and her heart sank at the sight. 

Sooyoung’s mother was in a wheelchair being pushed into the living room by her son. She wore a beanie on her head, and also a green crew neck sweater, one that seemed far too oversized for her. She seemed frail almost, and she coughed a few times, and still managed to have a bright smile on her face. But Jungeun tried her best to conceal her shock at the situation. Had Sooyoung’s mother been sick this entire time? Why hadn’t she said anything? “It’s about time I got to meet you.” She smiled, her voice a little weak. Once she had gotten closer, Jungeun stood up and bowed to her. But the woman assured her it wasn’t necessary. She reached out for a hug instead, and Jungeun immediately reciprocated it. The woman held her tightly, smiling when she backed away. “Well you certainly are beautiful.” 

Sooyoung sat there in silence, before she got up as well, hugging the woman. She kissed Sooyoung’s cheek. “Omma.. do you need anything? Water, something to eat? Some blankets?” The woman waved her daughter off, forcing her to sit down. 

“Sooyoung.. you’re going to run yourself crazy. I’m okay. I wouldn’t be out of my room otherwise.” Sunwoo helped her out of the wheelchair and into the recliner. She sat down, immediately grimacing at the pain. She didn’t want Sooyoung to see,however, so she sucked it up. Forcing a smile onto her face. “It’s nice to finally meet you Jungeun.. the blonde hair is beautiful.. healthy too.” She smiled.

“Thank you.. Mrs…” 

“Mrs. Lee.” She chuckled, stifling a cough. “But you can call me mom.” It was small but Jungeun felt her heart warm at the sound of that. She’d barely even met this woman for 10 minutes yet and she was already making her feel the warmth of an actual mother. 

“Dad is on his way back home.” Sunwoo mentioned. “I’ll go grocery shopping with him once he gets here.” 

“Dad is still here?” Sooyoung questioned. “I’m shocked.” 

“Sooyoung..” Her mother warned. “You know he’s busy.” 

“We’re all busy.” She retorted. 

Jungeun just sat there awkwardly. Was Sooyoung not on good terms with her father? She never really spoke about these things with her.. should she have asked? She didn’t want to pry though.. she preferred when Sooyoung brought up personal things on her own. She never liked to force anything out of her. The older woman sighed. “Well, Jungeun.. do you think you’ll be able to stay for dinner?” 

The blonde frowned at the question. “Unfortunately I can’t.. my mom’s cooking dinner tonight and my aunt is coming over so I can’t miss it.. I wish I could stay though.” She explained, but the woman understood, nodding with understanding. 

“Well, maybe next time hm?” 

“Absolutely.” She smiled. Suddenly they heard the front door open, their heads turned in the direction of the hallway. A man had put his keys down onto a stand in the hall before he walked towards them in the living room. It was Sooyoung’s father. Adoptive father anyway.

“They didn’t have the heated blankets but they did have the body pillows.” He said to his wife, kissing her cheek before showing her the items he had bought. Sooyoung completely ignored his presence, and Jungeun swallowed hard, sitting closely beside her. She could feel Sooyoung’s fingers anxiously toying with her jeans. “And hello you two. I assume you’re Jungin?” 

“ _Jungeun_...” Sooyoung corrected him with fierceness before Jungeun could even do it herself. But the blonde just smiled nervously, politely shaking his hand as they greeted each other. 

“Yes. I’m Jungeun.” 

“Sooyoung’s girlfriend.” Sunwoo added, biting into an apple. Sooyoung glared at him, before turning back to her father with a blank expression. 

“Honey.. Sunwoo said that you’re going grocery shopping for tonight. Could you make sure to bring back some of those chocolate covered pretzels? Sooyoung gave me some of them recently and I loved them.” She laughed. 

“Of course.” He smiled, before turning to Sooyoung again. “I brought you some flowers. They’re lilies.” 

The girl just looked at them, and Jungeun quickly acted on it. She grabbed them, thanking him for them nicely before handing them to Sooyoung with pleading eyes. “I’m ready.” Sunwoo said as he arrived back downstairs from his room.

“Hey, you should stay here with the girls. I’ll be quick and I need you to chop up the peppers.” He explained and Sunwoo grunted.

“Ugh.. fine.” He rolled his eyes, removing his shoes while he was at it. 

“I won't be long okay?” He said to Mrs. Lee, kissing her forehead before walking off. Sooyoung scoffed. She was so irritated by how he was never home to help his own wife. And to her, it was like he hardly made efforts to be there anyway. Her mother deserved better. Their silence was broken by the sound of glass hitting the floor and shattering. 

Her mother sighed gently, her eyes closed briefly before she turned to her daughter. “Sooyoung, why don’t you make sure your brother doesn’t break everything in there for me, hm?” She looked at Jungeun and she nodded approvingly. 

“I won’t be long.” She said to Jungeun, kissing her hand gently before standing up and running to the kitchen. The both of them watched as she disappeared down the hall and heard her loud voice scolding her brother. The woman turned back to the blonde with a small smile on her face.

“I’m sorry for Sooyoung’s behavior.. she’s not quite on the best terms with her father..” She spoke, getting Jungeun’s attention. The girl sat up properly, listening to the woman that sat in the recliner beside her. “He hasn’t been around much this year. He works abroad most of the time so he can’t be here to help me and the kids.. Sooyoung despises him for that but it’s not his fault.” 

“She just cares about you.. I can see that she does. She just wants the best for you.” Jungeun defended her girlfriend, although she respected the woman’s opinion and thought process.

“She does care about me. To the point it’s overwhelming lately.. My cancer has completely taken over my body and the doctor’s said there isn’t much else they can do for me.. she hasn’t been the same since. I can’t breathe out of sync without the girl worrying herself near to death.” 

“Cancer..” Jungeun muttered, her eyes sad as she looked at the woman. 

“Oh don’t you start with the puppy eyes too.” She laughed weakly. “I could tell you were curious when you first saw me. I’m sure Sooyoung hadn’t said a word about it to you.” 

“She hardly ever speaks of her family.” 

The woman figured that was the case. “Sooyoung is… fragile. Her nickname used to be ‘clam’.” The woman laughed. “Tough shell, soft inside. That’s how I would describe her. She’s very to herself. She doesn’t complain despite her life being—.. Just be gentle with her. Don’t hurt her, and listen. Be understanding, and _patient_.” 

Jungeun just sat in place as the woman spoke to her about her loving girlfriend. She had already known Sooyoung was that way. She did seem to be quite tough on the outside. But anyone who got to know her could see she was far more than that. Her legs were crossed and her fingers were intertwined nervously. “Is there any reason she doesn’t like talking about herself? Should I be worried?” 

“Well as you can see her life isn’t all rainbows and sunshine. She has a dying mother in front of her and… I’m sure when she’s ready to speak, she will speak. But for now, patience is the key. It’ll feel worth it when she finally opens up to you. It means she loves you.” 

“Loves me?” 

The older woman laughed yet again. “My Sooyoung is a romantic, and the way she speaks about you… boy oh boy… she’s head over heels, and she doesn’t even know it yet.” Her smile was wide as she said that. “You’re good for her. I trust that you’ll take care of her just as she takes care of you. She’s a lovely girl. Hardheaded but the sweetest of them all.” 

“She is sweet.” Jungeun smiled at that. “Your cancer.. did they say how long you have?” 

“Well a month ago they said one thing, but my health isn’t getting any better, so I’m starting to not believe I have more than 3 months.” 

Jungeun looked at her sadly. “I’m so sorry..” She apologized, feeling immense sorrow. 

“Oh don’t be. I’m feeling better than ever these days, I know it’s going to change soon. But I’m glad I was able to meet you this way and not from a hospital bed.. you’re a lovely girl Jungeun. You seem very trustworthy and deserving of my daughter’s love.” She complimented suddenly. “She speaks of you highly. I couldn’t leave this earth without seeing such a person for myself.” 

“I appreciate it very much. Thank you for your kind words. I’ll do my best to not disappoint you.” She smiled. Jungeun couldn’t believe how kind the woman was. But it didn’t surprise her too much, she definitely could see where Sooyoung got it from. Despite her inflated ego, she still had manners.. kind of. She wondered if Sooyoung told her mother how they met and how much of a nuisance she was towards her. But she highly doubted that. 

She could hear Sooyoung returning to the living room. “Is she running you crazy?” Sooyoung playfully questioned her girlfriend, but Jungeun shook her head no. 

“No. We were just having a nice talk.” She assured, and Sooyoung smiled. “Are you finished helping your brother?” 

“Mhm. He broke your cookie jar by the way.” She snitched. 

She laughed as she could hear Sunwoo come running down the hallway, prepared to defend himself. “It was an accident!” He shouted, apologizing the second he saw his mother covering her ear at his loudness. “See— you made me hurt mom’s eardrums.” 

“You did that on your own.” 

“I hate you.” 

“You don’t.” 

He stuck his tongue out at her and she did the same back. Jungeun just laughed at the look on Mrs. Lee’s face, as she observed her children’s childish behavior. 

_**//** _

Sooyoung had shown Jungeun around the house, before they ended up just sitting in the backyard together. Their legs crossed as they looked at the pool in front of them. They sat there silently, and Jungeun felt her heart leap when Sooyoung slowly moved to hold her hand. “I know you have questions. But I’d like to apologize first.. for not telling you about my mom.” She softly announced. “I just didn’t want you to look at me differently. I like how you look at me. Like you really like me. But you’d look at me differently if you knew I had a dying mother.” 

Jungeun understood completely. She didn’t think she would have looked at her any differently however. If anything, she’d just see Sooyoung as someone even more stronger than she originally thought. She was devastated for her girlfriend, but she wouldn’t have looked at her in any other way that wasn’t pure admiration and love. “She’s been sick for a long time now. She beat it, and it came back harder. And recently we found out the cancer traveled from her breasts to her bones.. she doesn’t have much longer. But I like to not think about it.” 

“You don’t have to talk about it Sooyoung.. I understand.” 

“But I want to.” She admitted. “If not to anyone else, then to you especially. You’re my girlfriend and I think you have a right to know what’s going on in my life.” 

Jungeun was at a loss for words. But she understood Sooyoung completely. She kissed her cheek, and her stomach turned at the way Sooyoung smiled at her when she did. “I’m grateful for what you tell me already. Whenever you’re ready to speak, I’m ready to listen.” 

“Thanks.. for not pressuring me.” She said shyly, but full of gratitude. 

“I got you.” She assured, before receiving the softest kiss from the softest lips in the entire universe. 

_**//** _

After their talk by the pool, the two girls went back inside and to the kitchen where the others resided. They all spoke for a bit as Sooyoung’s father cooked dinner. She didn’t speak directly to him still, but she was at least in his presence for longer than 5 minutes this time. Sooyoung was more pleased at the fact that Jungeun seemed to easily get along with her family, and they seemed to really like her too. It was rare that she brought home girls to her family. But Jungeun was special. She was well mannered, likeable and just overall loving to be around. She fit right in perfectly, laughing and making humorous jokes like she’d been with the family for years. When really it was just one day. 

It was nearing time for dinner back at Jungeun’s though, and she didn’t want to be late. The last thing she needed was her mom hounding her even more than she already does. “We’re going to head out now.” Sooyoung announced to the others as she had her arm across Jungeun’s shoulders. “I’d stay but I’m her ride back and she needs to be home.” 

“Well then—“ The woman said, slowly moving to stand up despite the exhaustion it caused just to move a simple limb. 

“Mom what the hell are you doing?” Sooyoung said, gently placing her mother back down. “You don’t need to be standing up okay?” 

“Sooyoung I’m fine.” 

“Mom she’s right.. you shouldn’t overexert yourself.” 

The woman just sighed in defeat, turning back to Jungeun as she had been doing previously. “It was nice meeting you Jungeun. You owe me a family dinner.” She said kindly, hugging the girl as she lowered herself to make it easier for the older woman. 

“I promise to make the next one.” She smiled. 

“We’ll hold you to that.” Sunwoo jokingly said, hugging Jungeun briefly before returning back to the fridge. 

“It was nice to have you here young lady. You seem to be a perfect fit for our Sooyoung.” He smiled, his hand firmly placed on her shoulder before pulling her in for a hug. Sooyoung just stood there with her hands in her pockets, patiently waiting for them all to say their goodbyes. 

Once they’d finished, she held Jungeun’s hand all the way out to the car. “Let’s get you home.” 

_**//** _

She’d gotten home safely and accompanied by her girlfriend. She followed Jungeun inside and was greeted happily by everyone inside, her father as always, hardly even spared a glance in their direction. Yerim seemed to be a lot more talkative this time around too, probably because of the talk she and Jungeun had recently. 

There were a few things Jungeun hated about family dinners. One of them was the fact that her parents had quite literally nothing to say other than bullshit. The other one was that whenever Sooyoung was over, they turned into some of the fakest people ever. The questions she asked Sooyoung were things she didn’t even ask her own kids about. Not to mention the mediocre meals, she’d rather eat ramen every night than this. 

“Oh no, we just have the same friend group. We all hung out together today.” Sooyoung said calmly, answering the woman’s question. That may have been the 20th one that night. Sooyoung didn’t mind the meal prepared, she’d definitely had better. But she was grateful to have been invited because that just meant more time to look at her beautiful girlfriend. The blonde sat across from her and she found it quite impossible to divert her eyes somewhere else that wasn’t on her. Jungeun noticed, and despite how flustered she was, she did a good job at hiding it from the others. 

“And Sooyoung— I remember you telling us that you play sports. Do you work out often?” 

Sooyoung finished chewing before answering. Wiping at her lips and cleaning her mouth. “I do. I work out _very_ often.” The poor girl nearly choked on her food when Sooyoung winked at her after saying that. She coughed loudly, her eyes watering as the meat she had went down the wrong pipe. Yerim immediately patted her back to help her, while Younghoon passed her a glass of water.

“Dude. Be careful.” He said from beside Sooyoung, and she couldn’t believe the sinister smirk that she was hiding behind her intertwined fingers. 

The doorbell suddenly rang, and Jungeun watched as her mother quickly hopped up to go and answer it. “Must be our aunt. How come she’s allowed to be late to dinner?” 

“Shut up Younghoon.” She heard her father say. It was the first time he had spoken to his children that night. 

The women returned back to the kitchen, and Jungeun rolled her eyes at her aunt. She undid her jacket and placed it on the back of the chair she was sitting in. “Sorry for being so late. The traffic after work is terrible.” She placed down a clear bin that seemed to have brownies in it. “But I made these last night and wanted to bring some for the kids. And the adults too of course.” She smiled. 

Jungeun watched as her mother prepared a plate for her aunt. As she did it, she heard her aunt suddenly speak to Younghoon. “So this is the girl your mother's been telling me about?” 

“Um yeah.” Younghoon answered nonchalantly. 

“Well she’s stunning.” 

“Thank you ma’am.” Sooyoung politely accepted the compliment. That was a no brainer though, she loved compliments.

“How’d you end up with someone like her anyway? You don’t go to school, and the only time you go out is to be with that rusty band of yours.” 

Younghoon’s fist clenched at her words. “It’s none of your concern.” 

“Younghoon. Be respectful to your aunt.” He heard his mother say, and he scoffed.

He went back to eating his food. “I’ll be respectful when she learns to stay out of my damn business.” 

“Younghoon.” Their father said sternly. “I raised you better than that.” 

Now he was getting angry. “You hardly raised me. All you do is sit in that damn chair and read the newspaper like we’re in the 60’s. Get a damn ipad.” 

The man clenched his jaw at Younghoon’s response. “Get the hell out of my dining room.” He said, and when the boy didn’t move, he raised his voice louder. Slamming his fist down onto the table and making the other’s jump. “NOW.” 

Younghoon stood up, throwing his utensils down onto the plate and kicking his chair back against the table. Jungeun could hear the front door open and close loudly. It was quiet for a moment after that, and Sooyoung’s eyes searched for Jungeun’s anxious ones. “Well..” Her aunt spoke again. “His attitude certainly hasn’t changed.” 

“You purposely poked at him.” Jungeun defended. “And he retaliated.” 

“Jungeun. Manners.” Was all her mother said, and the blonde just went back to eating her food. The last thing she needed was to get embarrassed in front of her girlfriend, and especially in front of her evil aunt. She couldn’t wait for dinner to be over. The longer she sat there the more it felt like she was melting in the seat from the brooding awkwardness. “We’ll be having another family dinner tomorrow before your dad has to go visit your grandparents back home.” The older woman added.

Jungeun quickly finished her food so she could leave the table, and Sooyoung followed after. The blonde left without saying another word, and Sooyoung smiled at everyone. “Thank you for dinner. It was wonderful really. I appreciate you inviting me over.” She said, as she stood up. 

“Leaving already?” 

“I’d like to get home before it gets too late. I actually have to rest early tonight. I have a big day tomorrow.” She explained. “But once again, I appreciate the invite. Goodnight Mr. and Mrs. Kim.” She smiled, waving and leaving the kitchen. Before she left out completely, she quietly went up the stairs, opening the door slowly to Jungeun’s room. The girl was sprawled out on the bed, unaware of Sooyoung’s presence. She smiled to herself at the way Jungeun’s belly cutely was exposed as her shirt had risen slightly as she lay there. 

“It’s nice to finally have you to myself.” Sooyoung said, watching as Jungeun quickly sat up at the sound of her voice. 

“ _Sooyoung.. what_ are you doing up here?” She questioned quietly. “You know my parent’s will be suspicious if you’re up—“ And Sooyoung closed the space between them, kissing her girlfriend hungrily, shutting her up in the process. 

“I don’t care. It’s torture not being able to show you affection when I’m here.. besides, I’m leaving now so I wanted to say goodnight.” She explained cutely, still kissing her in between a few words. 

“Should I come early tomorrow? For the game?” 

“No. Just come on time. Heejin will be there early so you’ll have a spot saved.” Sooyoung assured, kissing her again. 

“Um, I’ll need an extra spot saved. My friend is coming as well..” She mentioned and Sooyoung shrugged.

“That won’t be a problem.” She smiled. “Goodnight Jungeun.” She kissed her once more before leaving. Jungeun just huffed out a sigh as she leaned back against her bed, smiling because of Sooyoung but also sighing because it was definitely _a day_ today. But tomorrow would be better. She was sure of it.

* * *

“Jiwoo.. please don’t embarrass me.” Jungeun pleaded to her friend in the passenger seat. They were on their way to the basketball game, the final one of the season, being the championship game. Jungeun was genuinely excited and equally as nervous. It was a big night for Sooyoung but also she liked the idea of her closest friend meeting the person that made her world spin. Despite the fact that she whined and complained about it, she really was happy to have Jiwoo there. And now she was meeting her girlfriend, someone that Jiwoo had only heard about. She’d seen numerous photos of the girl but she was sure it’d be much different seeing her in person. 

“Jungeun-ahhhh, I won’t embarrass you more than you will do on your own.” She teased, making Jungeun roll her eyes in response. 

Once they got there, it was packed, as expected. The arena was much bigger too, as they had to travel to a different area for the big game. It was actually being broadcasted on tv too. The line was out the door for the entrance, and to be fair, it was a little cold that night. It didn’t help that she was wearing only a long jersey (it was Sooyoung’s name and jersey number) and some white converses. “The line is so long.” Jiwoo pointed out, not able to see over the taller people in front of them. Thankfully, the line moved quickly, and they were inside trying to find their seat before they knew it. From afar, Heejin spotted Jungeun’s blonde hair the moment she walked into the gymnasium. 

She called out loudly for her, trying to get her attention. “Jungeun!” 

The blonde looked in her direction, seeing Heejin waving at her. Jiwoo followed closely behind her friend, and once they made it into the stands with Heejin, she was pleased by the sight of her. “Sooyoung told me to make sure I saved two extra spots. Exy is down there with some of her other friends.” Heejin pointed out.

“I’m Jiwoo.” The hyper girl introduced, and Heejin seemed to be surprised by her enthusiasm. 

“Heejin.” She said back, gently shaking her hand. Jungeun sat down, Heejin on her right and Jiwoo on her left. The gymnasium had music playing and the crowd was loud the more people filed in. The seats were pretty comfy too. Heejin noticed that Jungeun was looking around anxiously. “What are you looking at?” 

“I’m looking for someone.” 

“Who?” 

“Just.. someone.” 

_**//** _

“We made it. This is it. Tonight is ours!” Sooyoung shouted, getting her teammates riled up and motivated. “Go out there and give it your all.” She said, and they did their signature chant. 

“ _Swans_.” They said in unison, before making their way out of the locker room. Sooyoung had on a white Nike headband today to go along with her uniform. As they got closer to the court, and further from the locker room, the cheers became almost deafening. It sent chills down the team’s back. The sound was something Sooyoung would never get tired of. Hearing chants, people shouting, the reactions to a shot or a dunk. Or even reactions to a foul or a bad call. The atmosphere when she was on that court was something she couldn’t explain in words. 

The moment she stepped out there and heard the crowd cheering, she stopped for a moment, taking in the sounds of everyone around her. The loud music playing, the crowd stomping their feet. Her teammates patting her back and shouting loudly as they hyped themselves up. Sooyoung just stood there, her hands on her hips and her eyes excitedly looking around. 

Jungeun stood in the crowd, her eyes on her beautiful girlfriend as she watched her look around the arena with excitement. “Is that her?” She heard Jiwoo ask, and Jungeun couldn’t even open her mouth to speak. She was in a complete trance seeing her girlfriend. She was stunning and her passion for basketball was something she admired. She worked hard and to see her on that championship court was really something else. 

It didn’t take long for the game to start. The teams were introduced, and then they were on the court. Jungeun watched as Sooyoung stood in place, stretching her limbs. She watched as the other team received the jump ball, and the way Sooyoung moved up and down the court. Passing the ball efficiently, and finding her way through the opposing teams defense. 

“God this is so exciting!” Jiwoo said, watching the game despite not knowing a thing that was happening. Whenever she had questions however, Heejin or Jungeun would answer and explain to her what was happening or why something happened.

It was the 2nd quarter now, and Jungeun was anxiously watching the entrance. The score was 40 to 46. The other team had the lead at the moment. Jungeun excused herself, answering her phone and running towards the double doors of the gym. When she got out into the hallway, she spotted Sunwoo pushing the wheelchair towards her, with her husband beside her. The woman smiled at Jungeun, reaching her arms out as the blonde walked towards her. “Oh you look just lovely.” She smiled. “Definitely an outfit Sooyoung would enjoy seeing you in.” She added, making Jungeun extremely flustered. 

“Thank you.. um, my friend had spots saved for the 3 of you. Courtside.” She smiled. “She’s playing really well.” 

“I’m sure she is.” Sunwoo smiled. “Lead the way.” He gestured at the blonde and she turned around, allowing them to follow her. When they stepped inside, the girls on the court were still going at it, and the crowd was still excitedly watching and cheering them on. Jungeun led them to their area, and pointed to where she was sitting with friends in case Sunwoo needed her. 

The day before, Sunwoo had pulled Jungeun aside, asking her what time the game was and such. He’d planned to have their mom at the championship game since she’d never been to one of Sooyoung’s games. It was a surprise for Sooyoung, and it was something her mother really wanted to do anyway. She felt it was something she had to do. For Sooyoung, and for herself. 

She understood why Sooyoung was so into this sport. The environment was amazing. It felt like she was at a real professional game, there were cameras, and every seat was filled. When she spotted her daughter, she couldn’t help but feel a burst of excitement. And a sense of pride as she saw who she’d raised over the years. She’d grown into a fine young woman. Talented and beautiful, and so loving. 

When halftime came around, Sooyoung moved to the locker room again. Sunwoo explained what they did during this time. He watched as Jungeun passed by them, walking towards the area Sooyoung went. He told his parents he’d be back. 

When Jungeun found the locker room, she went inside, spotting Sooyoung immediately. Her smile radiating and her body glimmering from the sweat. She walked up behind her, massaging her shoulders gently and kissing her temple. Sooyoung immediately knew who it was just from the smell of her perfume and the blonde locks that draped over her. She stood up, turned around and pulled Jungeun in for a kiss. When she noticed her outfit, she genuinely had to sit back and take a look. She felt lightheaded at the sight of Jungeun’s legs on display, and the jersey she wore had _her_ name on it, and _her_ number on it. 

“You expect me to play properly knowing you look _this_ sexy right now?” She questioned, pulling her in closer. “Damn it Jungeun.” 

“Sexy? I was going for cute but..” 

“You can be both.” Sooyoung assured. 

“You’re playing better than I thought you would be.” She heard another voice say, and she was shocked to see her brother standing there with a knowing smile on his face.

“This area is off limits for guys.” She joked and he smiled, hugging her tightly.

“Ew you’re all sweaty and shit.” 

“No shit idiot.” She said, shoving him away lightly. “What are you even doing here?” 

“I wanted to come see you in your championship game.” He smiled. 

Their break was up now, so they had to get back out onto the court. He turned around for a moment, watching the other players leaving the locker room. “I’ll go back out there. This is the home stretch. Get a little more live, get this win. I believe in you.” 

“Thank you.” Sooyoung smiled, and he smiled back quickly leaving the locker room. 

Sooyoung turned back to Jungeun, looking at her outfit one more time before kissing her deeply. “Thank you for always coming back here during halftime.. I look forward to it.. it’s nice.” She admitted, holding her closely. “I can’t lie and say it’s not distracting though. You’re just too sexy, it throws off my game.” 

“I’ll try my best to not be a distraction anymore.” She smirked. “Now go and win this game.” 

_**//** _

When Sooyoung stepped out onto the court, her eyes immediately followed Jungeun as she walked back off into the stands. But before she walked fully up, Sooyoung could see her smiling brightly, and then pointing over to her parents. Sooyoung’s eyes widened at the sight, and she quickly ran over to her mother, hugging her tightly. “What are you doing here?!” She questioned excitedly, kissing her forehead. 

“I came to see you play.” She smiled. 

Sooyoung hadn’t even acknowledged her father, but he expected that. She walked back onto the court, getting into position as the game continued on. At some point, Jungeun had gotten nervous because of the scores. Sooyoung’s team was down by _10_. And it was the last 2 minutes of the 3rd quarter. They took a timeout break, and Jungeun watched as the team huddled up and spoke amongst themselves. She spotted Jinsoul at some point, standing off to the sides and watching the game with her squad behind her. She was impressed by how well Sooyoung played, almost consistently. The basketball player was way more energetic today however. From her spot alone, Jinsoul could hear Sooyoung’s voice yelling out to her teammates on the court. 

“Wow.. she’s really good.” Jiwoo complimented after watching Sooyoung run up the court and make a simple layup between two people from the opposing team. 

“She is. She’s the reason for most of the team’s wins. At first I thought I was biased, but she really is their best player.” Heejin pointed out to the other girl. Jungeun was completely focused on the game, her heart pumping more and more as The Swans caught up. They were down by 4 points now, which in the blink of an eye was only 1. Sooyoung had made yet another 3 pointer, resulting in 22 for her individual game points. 

Jungeun could tell Sooyoung was exhausted, but she pushed through, keeping her confidence and staying sharp. It wasn’t obvious to the average eye. But she was Sooyoung’s girlfriend, and she could tell by the look on her face sometimes that the red haired girl desperately needed some rest. As they proceeded to the 4th quarter now, the crowd began to get rowdier. They were more vocal and complained whenever someone got fouled. Jungeun could tell Sooyoung was starting to get heated, as multiple calls were ignored when it came to her and her team. 

At one point, Sooyoung had a nasty fall. She was shoved out of the way aggressively, her ankle twisted awkwardly. She got up and for some time she was limping, but she pushed through the pain, coming back harder than before. 

At one point her teammate threw Sooyoung the ball while she was mid-air, and she dunked it in cleanly. The crowd jumped out, yelling and clapping their hands. They were tied now, 62-62. There was 2 minutes left in the game. 

Sooyoung sat down and drank some gatorade as their coach relayed some gamplans to them for the home stretch. This was their moment. “Are you sure you’re good to play Sooyoung? We can have someone look at your ankle for you..” Her coach mentioned and she shrugged it off.

“I’m fine. Really I am. Now let’s bring home this trophy right team?” 

They were all on board with that one. They went back out onto the court, and Sooyoung hid how badly her ankle hurt at that moment. But she didn’t want to sit out, especially in such a crucial part of the game. Her team needed her. They needed a leader and someone to set the momentum of the game. She made eye contact with her mother at one point, and she felt her confidence skyrocket. She had to put on a show for her mother. Her mother who was sick and in pain, coming out to see her daughter play a sport she was so passionate about. 

Sooyoung pulled off various crossover moves and unrealistic but yet achievable shots. Her teammates cheered her on, clapping whenever she scored or high fiving her whenever she assisted them a score. At some point, her adrenaline was so high she didn’t even feel her ankle pain anymore. It was one minute left and the score was 75-80. The opposing team managed to catch up, despite Sooyoung’s efforts of keeping her team’s lead. There was only so much she could do alone. 

She called a timeout, huddling up with her teammates on the sidelines. “Look I need you guys to fucking step your shit up alright? _This_ , is the championship game. We made it this far. We’ve run over anyone that has gotten in our way. We’ve come too far to lose this now. So I’m telling you, shape the fuck up. Alright?” She put her hand in the middle, and they stacked theirs on top.

“Swans!” They shouted, getting back into the game. The girls watched nervously as the time started to go down. They had a minute left in the game and it was their possession of the ball. Jiwoo aggressively held onto Jungeun once the game started again. They were unbelievably nervous for the outcome. Jungeun watched as Eunseo caught the ball, trying to shoot a three and missing, resulting in the other team rebounding it. They took it up the court, elegantly passing the ball to each other. One of the players on the other team, also known as the Black Jets, tried to run up the middle sneakily. They nearly made it, but the crowd went wild as Sooyoung managed to prevent it from going in. Smacking the ball away so hard it nearly knocked her teammate back onto the ground.

The crowd was on their feet, with 40 seconds left on the clock and The Swans still down by five. It was nearing the endgame, so The Swans began to rely more on Sooyoung than ever. Knowing how clutch she could be in the final moments of the game. Jungeun felt her heart pumping as she watched Sooyoung shoot the ball from the two point line. Making it in and quickly guarding the opposing team from the jump. 

The moment they passed the ball out, it was stolen by Lisa, and she immediately laid it up into the basket. They were down by 1 now with 20 seconds left in the game. The opposing team tried to hold onto the ball, which they could if they wanted to, to run the clock out. But Sooyoung was smarter than that. She immediately ran for the foul, snatching the ball from their hand and hearing the whistle. 

The thing about Sooyoung, was that she was very observant. Throughout the game, the player on the other team, who also goes by the name of Seola, had a weak spot in free throws. She also happened to be the best player on her team despite that. She was no leader however. So Sooyoung took the chance, causing a foul that sent Seola to the free throw line.

Jungeun’s heart sank when she made the first one, noticing it put them up by 2 now instead of 1. But Sooyoung’s concentration didn’t break, and neither did her morale. The gym was quiet for the first time that night, only the sound of the ball hitting the ground and the sound of shoes squeaking when the ball was released from her hand. She missed it entirely, and the crowd went wild, except for the complaining from the other team’s crowd. The ball was passed up the court, from Eunseo, to Lisa, and then back to Sooyoung. Who had juked the defender on her, shooting a fade away 3 point shot. She fell to the ground as she lost her balance, watching the ball swish directly into the basket. 

The girls stood up, shouting out at Sooyoung loudly, although their voices were drowned out by the crowd around them. Sunwoo and his father stood up as well, clapping and cheering loudly. The 3 point shot put The Swans in the lead. 82-81 was the score with just a measly 10 seconds on the clock. The Swans upped their defense, wanting to guarantee and seal the win. But despite their efforts, the opposing team managed to score 2 points. With 4 seconds on the clock, Sooyoung managed to outrun the defender up the court. Her teammate threw the ball up to her, and she caught it with one hand, using the momentum she had to lift herself off the ground and dunk the ball in with one hand. The sound of it crashing through the net sparked something in the crowd, and the buzzer rang. 

The sounds were deafening as she could hear nothing but a muffled tone as her teammates ran over to her. Jumping onto her and knocking her to the ground. Ruffling her hair and patting her back cheerfully. The girls jumped up, shouting and cheering, feeling the stands shaking from the stomping and jumping of the crowd. Jiwoo pulled Jungeun in for a hug and Heejin joined in, feeling Jiwoo’s hands reaching to ruffle her hair. Sunwoo cheered excitedly with his mom and dad, it was the liveliest he’d seen his mother in so long. It made his heart feel all full and warm. 

Sooyoung’s teammates helped her off the ground, shouting at her that they did it. The final score was 84 to 83. They had won by one point but it was the most difficult game she’d had that season, so a win was a win. Jungeun ran down to the floor, and when Sooyoung saw her she ran towards her too, letting Jungeun jump in her arms and kiss her in front of everyone. The blonde held Sooyoung’s cheeks in her hands, wrapping her legs around her waist and pressed her lips against hers with a deep kiss. Sooyoung held her tightly, before slowly allowing the girl to land back on her feet. 

She ran over to her family, allowing them to hug and kiss her. Heejin also came down to the floor, jumping into Sooyoung’s arms after the girl outstretched them the moment she’d seen her. She hugged her friend tightly, rubbing her back comfortingly. Heejin jumped down herself, clapping for Sooyoung with the proudest look on her face. Jinsoul stood from across, watching from afar at how happy Sooyoung was. It made her heart shatter just a little at all of the love in her eyes in that moment as she eyed the blonde with a smile that could make anyone’s heart jump out of their chest. She noticed another girl, a much brighter girl coming over towards them too, smiling brightly at Sooyoung.

She went for a handshake but the shorter girl, who sported cute bangs pulled her in for a hug instead, and Sooyoung didn’t hesitate to hug her back. Jungeun and Heejin laughed as the girl excitedly jumped up and down, making expressful faces and using her hands to describe what she’d seen that night. 

Jinsoul softly smiled to herself, before following her squad to the back room. 

“I’m usually not this sweaty. I’m sorry.” Sooyoung apologized and Jiwoo assured her it was okay. 

“It’s not a problem! You worked so hard. I’m seriously impressed.” She complimented. “When you shot the ball and fell I was so worried for you! But then I saw you get up the moment you made it and _wow_. You’re amazingly talented.” Sooyoung couldn’t help but smile, her eyes glancing over to Jungeun who just shrugged in response. She was used to it from Jiwoo, so Sooyoung was going to have to get used to it as well. 

And suddenly, Sooyoung was being summoned over to her team that stood in the middle of the court as they were announced the college female basketball champions. They were each given gold medals, with their names engraved into it, with a female figure kneeling, holding a basketball by their knee. After they received those, they forced Sooyoung in the front, and despite her resisting, she ended up in the front anyway. But she allowed her friends to hold the trophy. After they’d taken what seemed like a million pictures, Sooyoung removed herself from the group and back to her girlfriend. “You just can’t stay away from me huh?” Jungeun teased, but she smiled when Sooyoung didn’t deny it.

“Yo.” Lisa said, walking over to Sooyoung with Eunseo by her side. Sooyoung noticed the golden trophy in her hands. She hadn’t realized how big it was until it was right in front of her. Not to mention how shiny it was. The girl smiled at her, before slowly handing it over to the red head. “Here— it’s time for your solo shot.” 

Sooyoung gently took it, before standing in front of the crowd that hadn’t moved yet. She held the trophy to her lips before making a kissing motion at it. A professional photo was snapped, a talented Sooyoung holding a championship trophy in her hand with the sight of a large supporting crowd behind her. She took another one where she smiled brightly; before giving the photographer a thumbs up that she was good. 

She took numerous photos with the trophy, first one alone with her mother, and then with her brother, and then with her brother and father and so on. Jiwoo was excited to take a photo with Sooyoung, Heejin was in that picture too after they took a duo one. And last, but not least, her favorite person ever. There were a variety of poses with her girlfriend that she did. Peace signs, flexing their muscles, glaring at the camera, Sooyoung holding her in one arm and the trophy in the other, and of course sealing the tiny photoshoot with a kissing picture. Jungeun’s cheeks grew red at the amount of affection Sooyoung was showing in front of so many people.

This wasn’t something she did often, so she felt a little embarrassed, but at the same time, Sooyoung made her feel so comfortable in her own skin. No one had ever done something like that for her. She felt like she could conquer anything when it came to Sooyoung. And like every other time, they continued their after game tradition. Except this time, Sooyoung’s parents paid for the entire dinner, taking the team and their family out to a fancy restaurant with unlimited alcoholic drinks. Heejin wasn’t much of a drinker thankfully, so she was able to be the driver for Sooyoung that night. And Jiwoo definitely didn’t drink much, but it wouldn’t matter anyway since her tolerance was so high.

The restaurant had to gather multiple tables and bring them together to house the large group. But they enjoyed their time together, drinking and eating food. Sooyoung’s eyes were directly on Jungeun, eyeing her without a care in the world. She was so shameless, but Jungeun found it kind of attractive how she couldn’t keep her eyes to herself. Or her hands for that matter. Except Jungeun made sure she did, especially around her family and friends. They could hear the sound of glass clinking; getting the group’s attention. Lisa stood up, still holding the fork in her hand and a glass of champagne in the other. 

“I just wanted to say a few things. First of all— congratufuckinglations to my amazing squad on securing this championship win. You guys did an amazing job, and no matter how close the game was and how many times we got fucked over, you kept your head up and pulled through for all of us. So congrats, I hope you’re proud of yourselves.” She smiled, hearing them all cheering and clapping, egging on her. “Secondly, I’d like to congratulate myself for being amazing as always.” The group immediately groaned in response to that one, and Sooyoung jokingly booed her. Lisa just winked at her in response. 

“Shameless!” Sooyoung yelled at her, making everyone around her laugh as they agreed.

Lisa cleared her throat. “I’d also like to thank our friends, girlfriends, loved ones, for supporting us in such a grueling season. I’m glad we got the win for you all, and I hope we’ve made each of you proud of us.” They silently thanked her, smiling to each other and nodding along. Lisa finally turned to the red head, who was in the middle of downing a shot of soju. But she immediately choked on it when she heard her name. Jungeun quickly went to her aid.

“And finally, to Sooyoung, you sexy beast— and an amazing captain that kept your word, instilling your trust in us and vise versa. You helped us so much this season, pushing us when we were down from a loss or just small minor inconveniences in general. You helped us find our weak spots so we can fix them and become a bigger, stronger team together.” Sooyoung smiled gently, covering her mouth shyly with her hand. Jungeun placed her hand on her thigh to comfort her. 

“But other than being an amazing team captain, you’re an amazing friend. You’re loving, and caring, a pain in everyone’s ass, and loyal. I wouldn’t trade you for anything in the world. I wish you endless success and happiness. And when you make it big, I’m expecting a lamborghini and a 6 room mansion with a nice backyard.” They all cheered, clinking their glasses together and downing whatever alcoholic beverage they had. Jungeun also downed a little champagne. She remembered what happened the last time she got drunk. 

Sooyoung noticed though, kissing her gently on the cheek. “You’re drinking pretty light huh?” 

“Mhmm.” 

“It’s a special night Jungeun.” 

“Is this your way of saying you want to get me drunk?” 

Without another word, Sooyoung handed a shot over to Jungeun, and grabbed one for herself. She raised the glass to her girlfriend, downing it as if it was the easiest thing ever. She looked so attractive doing it though. Sooyoung had to be one of the coolest people she’d ever met. The blonde tried to replicate it, but she immediately began coughing, and Sooyoung just giggled, patting her back. “Too strong?”

Jungeun cleared her throat once again, letting out another cough or two. “Another.” Was all she said, and Sooyoung didn’t hesitate. 

_**//**_

Everyone was full at this point, and drunk. Including Sooyoung. But for her, it was more of a light buzz. She smiled to herself as she scanned the table, seeing her friends laughing and smiling. They talked and joked around for over an hour. 

“You all should come to my place.” Sooyoung suddenly said. “Stay the night. We’ll have some more drinks in the safety of my place.” 

“Jungeun-ah, I think your girlfriend is asking us on a date.” Jiwoo joked, and Sooyoung laughed in response. Jungeun was slightly out of it. The alcohol had hit her fast, as expected. She was a bit of a lightweight. Sooyoung rubbed her back, and gave her reassuring kisses. She didn’t seem against the idea of staying at Sooyoung’s place though. 

“I have a bag at Jungeun’s place. We can sneak in and grab some things while your parents are asleep.” 

“Or I could get Yerim to do it.” Jungeun slurred. “I have clothes at Sooyoung’s place anyway, I should be fine. I’ll just tell her to bring your bag.” 

“Well that works.” Heejin laughed. “I’ll drive Sooyoung home and we’ll wait for you guys. 

It was a plan. Sooyoung watched as her father finished paying for the food, and she rested her head onto her mother’s shoulder, holding her hands in hers. The older woman rested her cheek against her daughter’s head. The pride she felt for her was immeasurable. It couldn’t be explained in words what it felt like as a parent to see your child succeed. And to receive so much love from peers while doing it. She was certain that Sooyoung would be _okay_. She kissed the top of her head, feeling Sooyoung snuggle a bit closer until it was time to leave. 

The team slowly dispersed as time went on, and the last people to go was Sooyoung’s family and of course Sooyoung’s small group of people. “You did really amazing out there.” Sooyoung felt a hand on her shoulder, and when she turned, she caught a glimpse of Jungeun smiling proudly. It was Exy, and Eunseo was outside waiting for her. “I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t thoroughly impressed by how you played tonight. I’m proud of you. Enjoy your night Sooyoung. And goodnight to you all too; thank you for a lovely dinner.” 

“It’s our pleasure.” Sooyoung’s father said with a tight smile. 

“Thank you Exy.” Was all Sooyoung could manage to say as the taller girl left the restaurant. 

“So how did this little plan of yours come to be?” Sooyoung finally questioned, looking at her family on her left side. Sunwoo laughed and her mother just smiled, before looking past Sooyoung.

“Well, your girlfriend actually helped us out. And of course your friend Heejin. She got us the seats, and Jungeun gave us the time and place.. she also helped us get there. She was communicating with your brother the whole time.” Sooyoung looked at Jungeun with tearful eyes and then at Sunwoo who just sighed with content. 

“Thank you. For coming.. it really meant a lot to me.” She looked up at her father. “All of you.” She added, and his smile loosened up expeditiously. Sooyoung pushed her mother in her wheelchair to her parent’s car, helping her get in the passenger seat. Her father took the wheelchair and put it in the trunk of the car, while Sunwoo got into the backseat and rolled down the window. While Sooyoung helped her mother, he spoke to the girls that waited for Sooyoung. 

“I just wanted to say I’m very proud of you Sooyoung… and thank you. I can put on my seatbelt myself.” Her daughter watched as she put the seatbelt on, she hid the weakness and shakiness of her limbs as she clicked it in. “You’re one of a kind. I hope you have lots of fun with your friends tonight, and call or text me when you’ve gotten home safe.” 

“I will Omma.” She smiled, kissing her cheek gently. Her mother smiled, allowing Sooyoung to close the door now. She went to the backseat, pushing her brother into the car by putting her hand on his face.

“What the—“ He whined.

She smiled. “Seatbelt.” He groaned, putting it on quickly. “I’ll see you soon alright? We owe mom a dinner.” She added, referring to Jungeun and herself.

“You do. A nice family dinner.” Her father chimed in, and on another day, she’d be irritated at the fact he even thought to speak to her. But she allowed it tonight, there was no room for hatred in her happy heart. She waved goodbye and walked with her friends to their car. Heejin started the car while Sooyoung followed Jungeun, unable to keep her hands to herself.

Jungeun nearly lost her footing. “Behave..” Was all she could find it in herself to say.

“I am behaving.” Sooyoung said in between kisses. She checked Jungeun out again, caressing her cheek softly and kissing her just as soft. Those soft kisses always made Jungeun dizzy, it was like her body couldn’t believe it was receiving such a sensation. Not to mention the alcohol amplifying the tiniest of things. “See you at the house?” 

“Mhm.” Jungeun mumbled, allowing Sooyoung to place gentle kisses along her neck. 

“Good.” She smiled, and then turned her attention to Jiwoo, who was resting her arms on the hood of the car. “And you—“

The girl jumped up, pointing to herself. “Eh?” 

“Drive safely.” She winked, smiling shortly after. Jungeun just laughed as she turned around to Jiwoo, cutely winking back and throwing cute hearts at her. They got in the car and drove off.

“Ready?” Heejin questioned as her friend got into the car.

“Ready.” 

_**//** _

When Sooyoung arrived home, she immediately showered. Thankfully, whenever she would sweat, she didn’t smell bad at least. It was a miracle, and she chose not to question it. She changed into something light, a t-shirt and some cute pajama shorts. Her hair was slightly pushed back with a few loose strands on her forehead. It was still a bit wet too since she hadn’t properly dried it, but she didn’t care that much. 

She took a few shots with Heejin, before the shorter girl tapped out. She hated the taste and the burning sensation in her chest. She also didn’t like to get blackout drunk, mostly because she didn’t enjoy it and the other was because she usually would take care of Sooyoung whenever she’d get too drunk. Sooyoung could hear a car pull into her driveway, and before she could stand up, Heejin ordered her to stay right there. 

And when she returned to the kitchen, she had two others with her. “This house is freaking amazing..” Jiwoo complimented, still in shock at how large it was for someone so small. Sooyoung smiled, sliding a shot over to Jiwoo. “Oh you want us to have a party tonight huh?” 

“Yes,” Sooyoung simply replied, standing up and turning on the radio in the hallway. She started dancing around, before grabbing herself another shot. “You too Jungeun.” She handed it to the blonde, raising the glass and downing it alongside her.

Jungeun was taken back by the strong taste. “Jesus.” She muttered, her face scrunched up in slight distress. She watched as Sooyoung slid out of the kitchen like a child. They followed behind her. And Heejin grabbed the entire bottle and a few shot glasses, following her friend into the living room with the others. Sooyoung was still dancing, singing a few lyrics too. She was a comedian for sure. Making the girls laugh at her playful antics. She removed everything from the table, and stood up on it. 

“Baby be careful.” Jungeun warned protectively, watching as Sooyoung drank from her own bottle. Eventually she made Jiwoo join her, pulling her off the couch and onto the stone table. The chipper girl didn’t hesitate for one second, throwing her head around too, dancing to the pop music on the radio. Heejin and Jungeun just laughed at what they were witnessing, their stomachs aching when Sooyoung and Jiwoo tried to outsing each other. At some point it really just became a shouting contest. Jiwoo jumped down, gesturing for Jungeun to join Sooyoung now.

She was out of breath at this point, she needed a second to breathe. But Sooyoung seemed to be fine. She had quite the stamina. Jungeun refused at first, but all it took was one glance from Sooyoung to give her the courage to make a fool of herself. She got off the couch, and without hesitation, Sooyoung put her hand out to help her up as if she was royalty. She stood in front of her with the bottle still in her hand, and Jungeun grabbed it, eyeing Sooyoung the entire time before she downed some herself. She handed the bottle to Heejin and started dancing on the table as well.

Her girlfriend was amused by the sight. It was always nice to see Jungeun do something totally out of character for her. But she wanted to have fun, and Sooyoung appreciated the way she pushed herself sometimes. Kissing her with quick pecks whenever she got the chance. Eventually Sooyoung became tired too, stepping off of the table and letting out a deep breath. “That was a workout.” She exhaled loudly, falling back onto the chair. 

Jungeun followed, sitting in her lap. Heejin changed the song from her phone, turning on some slower music. “What the hell is this indie shit?” Sooyoung teased, resulting in her friend rolling her eyes. 

“I like it.” Jungeun smiled softly, leaning back into Sooyoung’s arms. 

“Wanna dance to it?” 

“I can’t dance.” The blonde lied. 

“I’ll teach you.” 

“If you insist.” Sooyoung smiled, letting Jungeun hold her hand and guide her away from the furniture. Sooyoung grabbed Jungeun’s hands, placing them gently around her neck, while she put hers on Jungeun’s waist. She smiled at her, cutely guiding the shorter girl in her arms side to side. Jungeun was always in front of Sooyoung, beside her, behind her, but her heart still couldn’t handle any of it. It still raced as if it was the first time the charismatic girl was in her vicinity, inches away. Her shampoo fragrance wrapped around her. Her beautiful skin and her oh so tempting lips. The way her hair created a perfect middle part with loose strands on each side of her forehead. 

Her perfect eyes that were full of love whenever she looked at Jungeun. Sooyoung was perfect. In her eyes, there wasn’t anything better than the woman in front of her. It was unfair how perfect she was in every way. Her voice, her body, her charming and loving personality. Her endless drive and the endless amounts of love she had for the people she cared about. She was quite literally an angel on earth in Jungeun’s eyes. She doesn’t think there’s ever been a moment where she was sad or upset while around Sooyoung. It was nearly impossible when she was doing everything in her power to shower Jungeun with infinite amounts of love. 

At some point, she was just swaying the way Sooyoung was because the music had totally become drowned out at this point. She was too into what was right in front of her. She lost her focus entirely. Her fingers gently caressed the hairs on the back of Sooyoung’s neck, and her heart stopped when Sooyoung smiled gently at her. Is this what being in love felt like? 

“Hey do you know if she has any snacks here?” Jiwoo questioned the shorter girl beside her.

“Huh? Oh yeah. I can show you them actually.” Jiwoo followed the girl to the kitchen, the two in the living room completely unaware of their disappearance. “She has chips, cookies, granola bars, and uh… I think ice cream.” 

“A granola bar will be fine. I just need something to feed this liquor.” She explained, and Heejin grabbed a bar from the box, turning and handing it to her. 

“I had to convince her to even get snacks in this place. Her diet is a little strict since she’s an athlete and all. I couldn’t take it though since she invites me over so often.” Jiwoo laughed at that, ripping the wrapper off. “There was no way I could hang out here for hours without a snack and I certainly wasn’t eating a damn protein bar.” 

“I get it. Jungeun is the opposite actually. She eats so much junk sometimes.. I always make sure she eats healthy though.” 

“She eats junk food? And she still looks like _that_? Ah.. pretty people have it easy.” 

Jiwoo scoffed. “What are you saying? You’re pretty yourself.” 

Heejin looked away nervously. “Eh…” 

“No seriously. You really are.” Jiwoo smiled, noticing Heejin had become a little flustered by the sudden compliments. But she quickly jumped to the next topic. “I think Jungeun-ah is.. in love.” 

Heejin quickly turned back to Jiwoo, relieved by the topic change, but also anxious from the new topic. “Well I know Sooyoung is definitely in love with her.” 

“Did she tell you that?” 

“I know her.” Was all Heejin said. “We should probably get back before they think we snuck off and left them here all alone.” 

Jiwoo agreed, following the shorter girl back to the living room where Sooyoung and Jungeun were taking turns drinking from the bottle. Giggling amongst themselves. 

“You knew how to dance this whole time. You little devil… you just wanted to be close to me.” Sooyoung pointed out, and Jungeun laughed in response, knowing she’d been caught. The blonde noticed them arriving first, smiling and gently pushing Sooyoung back so she could take her mouth away from her neck. “Sneaking off without us huh?” Sooyoung questioned.

“We just wanted to leave you two lovebirds alone for a second.” 

Jungeun scoffed, losing her balance. But Sooyoung held her up, laughing at how drunk she was. Heejin shook her head. “Jiwoo wanted a snack, so I just showed her where everything was. I told her I was happy you finally decided to buy actual snacks.” 

“Hey. Protein bars are good for you.” 

“They also make you shit your guts out.” 

Jiwoo stopped chewing when she heard that, her eyes slowly looking down at the half eaten protein bar in her hand. 

Sooyoung gave a look of disapproval. “Whatever. Heejin you know where the guest rooms are. We’re going to head to bed now. Don’t make a mess you two.” 

“As if we could make a bigger mess than what you already made.” Heejin retorted, and she was instantly attacked by Sooyoung, ruffling her hair and kissing her cheek annoyingly. 

“Goodnight you two.” Sooyoung said, holding a drunk Jungeun’s hand.

“Jiwoo-ah, if you need me, just call or text okay?” 

“I’ll be fine. Get some rest.” She smiled, hugging her friend tightly and watching her get carefully guided out of the living room. 

Jiwoo smiled to herself before sitting down beside Heejin again. “You’re right. She is in love.” 

_**//**_

Jungeun was completely drunk at this point. It didn’t take long for the alcohol to hit her like a truck. But she’d be lying if she said she didn’t enjoy it. She liked it even more because it just meant Sooyoung would take care of her even more than she already did. She liked feeling her hands on her waist, keeping her on her feet. She liked how whenever she kissed Sooyoung, she could feel her smiling and calling Jungeun cute. “You’re so drunk.” Sooyoung said, and although she was drunk as well, she could handle it better. She let the girl shakily remove her top, marveling at the sight of her girlfriend. 

They’d slept together numerous times now, she was sure she lost count. But she loved how even now, Jungeun was a nervous wreck. No matter how many times they’d done this, she still behaved like it was the first time. It was endearing to say the least. Sooyoung was the opposite. She was confident in what she did. She’d learned the ins and outs of Jungeun’s body. The only thing she’d never get used to was seeing her body. Seeing her completely bare and trusting Sooyoung on a whole other level. 

Sooyoung lay on the bed after she’d been undressed, waiting for Jungeun to join her. But the moment she saw Jungeun moving to remove the jersey she wore, Sooyoung stopped her. “Wait—“ She said, wagging her finger at her. “Leave the jersey on.” 

She just looked too good with it on. Jungeun listened to Sooyoung’s demands before she was beckoned over to the bed, sitting in Sooyoung’s lap and allowing her neck to be attacked. She was too drunk to warn her about the placement; and at this point she didn’t care too much either. She was too distracted by Sooyoung’s hands running along her bare thigh, kissing every inch of exposed skin she could get to. Jungeun quivered at the sensation of Sooyoung’s hand slowly traveling up the jersey and down her back. It excited her in ways she couldn’t explain. She got a hold on Sooyoung’s neck, kissing her deeply. The blonde wasn’t usually this aggressive, it was probably the alcohol that sparked the release of her inhibitions. 

She felt Sooyoung gently caressing her bottom with her free hand. Jungeun jumped slightly at the feeling, her mind growing cloudy as she felt Sooyoung’s soft finger drawing random patterns along the skin of her back. She felt her sense of control slipping the longer this went on, but even more so when she noticed Sooyoung getting impatient and frustrated by Jungeun’s clothing still on. “Frustrated? You’re the one who told me to leave it on..” Jungeun pointed out, and Sooyoung whined in response. 

She helped Jungeun remove her things until there was nothing left to seperate them. She stared in awe as the red lighting perfectly bounced off of Jungeun’s toned body. The blonde woman still remained in Sooyoung’s lap, their bare bodies connected as they kissed each other aggressively, their hands eagerly grabbing at one another. It didn’t take long for Sooyoung to start, her fingers finding Jungen’s most sacred spot. She felt the softness of Sooyoung’s face pressed against her chest, listening to the sound of her heartbeat as she neared her climax. She was quite embarrassed at how easily that came to be, but she blamed it on the alcohol. 

Thankfully Sooyoung still had the strength to hold Jungeun when her body went limp in her grasp. “Sorry..” She apologized, and Sooyoung pressed her fingers against her lips, quietly shushing her.

“No need to apologize.” She smirked, finally allowing Jungeun to lay down onto the bed. She left a trail of soft kisses down Jungeun’s body, praising her every step of the way. Jungeun lost count of the amount of times Sooyoung had called her beautiful. She made it her mission to tell the blonde woman that. Because it was true, and she _needed_ Jungeun to know how beautiful she was and how Sooyoung was deeply attracted to her. 

Jungeun sighed with absolute content. She felt so safe in that moment, and despite her heart threatening to give out on her from the way Sooyoung looked at her; she still felt that way. She couldn’t imagine being with someone else this way. She was sure if she wasn’t with Sooyoung, she wouldn’t be with anyone. She was all she wanted, and she was 100% sure Sooyoung was all she needed. 

She allowed her to please her all she wanted that night. Her head had become one with the pillow she lied on at that point, allowing Sooyoung to get a taste of what she so desperately wanted. Her hands threaded through the soft red hair, pulling her in closer. Jungeun wanted her to go further, to do whatever she pleased. Jungeun’s body was Sooyoung’s, and Sooyoung’s was hers. They were made for each other. Jungeun willingly did this whenever Sooyoung wanted it from her. Which was a healthy amount. She found that they cuddled a lot more than they had sex. 

But whenever they were like this, it was groundbreaking. It was amazing how Jungeun had gone so long without such a special person in her life. Someone who made her feel like _this_. She could barely breathe, and Sooyoung wasn’t letting up. She wanted Jungeun to know she belonged entirely to her, and only her. Her moans were more frequent now. Timid at first, and more confident the closer she got. 

Sooyoung was obsessed with Jungeun. And the fact that it didn’t take much for her to make Jungeun go haywire was a thrill. She didn’t mean it in a way that Junguen was too easy to please, but rather that Sooyoung just had such a huge effect on her and her body. Sooyoung made her weak, and she made her heart flutter so much it was nauseating. Jungeun was sure she couldn’t spend a day without Sooyoung at this point, she couldn’t go a day without kissing her or hearing her voice. The way their lips fit perfectly together, it was as if they were specifically designed for each other. They were like the last two pieces of a puzzle.

“Sooyoung—“ She moaned out, holding her in place and silently praying that she wouldn’t make another move as she had her release. But thankfully, the girl silently understood as if Jungeun had sent some telepathic message to her. She kissed her inner thighs, allowing the precious girl to relax for a moment, before pressing her lips to hers once again. She’d gone far too long without kissing her, it drove her crazy. It was like she never would get tired of kissing those soft pink lips. Those lips that belonged to her and her only, always there for the taking. Her blonde locks were sprawled out on the pillow as if she was some sort of painted portrait. 

Jungeun had made her move now the moment she found the strength to sit up. Her fingers not wasting a second to please her girlfriend. She deserved it after all of the hard work she’d done the past hour. Jungeun had done this enough times to perfect it; knowing exactly what Sooyoung liked and wanted. Jungeun looked at her like she was the most beautiful woman in the world, kissing her bare chest and allowing Sooyoung to drag her nails down her pale back, leaving red streaks behind. When Sooyoung opened her eyes, she could see Jungeun in complete awe as she watched the amount of pleasure she was able to bring. It was Ha Sooyoung, beneath her, falling weak to what she was doing to her. It was like some dream that she hadn’t woken up from.

_Please don’t wake up_ , she thought to herself. Sooyoung’s eyes opened, and she could see the awe written all over Jungeun’s face as she watched her. When their eyes met, she held her gaze with Jungeun, drawing her in until their noses touched. Neither of them blinked the entire time, just eyeing each other as Jungeun’s fingers worked perfectly for Sooyoung’s desires. Jungeun could nearly see it, this fire in Sooyoung’s eyes, fiery flames that burned with passion. If she was going to hell for who she was, she was grateful. She was certain her activities tonight would officially damn her to hell, but in the end it would be completely worth it, because Sooyoung was _worth it_.

“Jungeun-ah…” Sooyoung panted, her eyebrows cutely furrowing. She tried her hardest to keep her eyes open, maintaining eye contact with the blonde, but the amount of pleasure she was receiving was hitting her like a truck. Shots of pleasure disturbed the peace of her body, making it impossible to keep her eyes open and on Jungeun. Sooyoung wasn’t able to hold out much longer, and her head dropped to one side, her silky hair following suit, covering her beautiful face partially and her body on fire. Tingles all over. Jungeun tried to bring her back to life, pressing her warm cheek against hers and turning her head back upright. Sooyoung felt her insides retracting and all of her senses flooding and tunneling to one spot where she was most vulnerable. 

She shut her eyes tightly, her legs closing around the blonde’s body as a series of strained moans left her lips that told Jungeun she had come undone. Jungeun’s eyes never left Sooyoung as she watched her relishing in the pleasure she just received, releasing the built up tension. Once she was finally able to recognize her surroundings again, Sooyoung smiled tiredly, gently pulling Jungeun in for a soft kiss. 

“Jungeun-ah… you’re becoming a serious threat to my body.” She laughed with the brightest smile, gently pushing Jungeun’s messy hair back. 

They both eventually lied side by side, catching their breath and letting their bodies finally relax. Sooyoung opened her eyes eventually, pleased to see Jungeun was there looking back at her already.

“Like what you see?” 

Jungeun didn’t even hesitate to respond. “Always.” 

Sooyoung smiled, kissing her gently before resting her arm over Jungeun’s waist. Their noses touched gently as they just lay in each other’s presence. 

Sooyoung just admired every inch of Jungeun. She was genuinely in shock at how beautiful she was. Her heart raced more than ever when Jungeun was this close to her, and although she initiated it most times, it still left her feeling weak in the knees. 

“How do people like you exist?” 

“Like me?” Sooyoung questioned with furrowed eyebrows. She picked up on the way Jungeun’s fingers nervously ran along her skin. 

They were both barely speaking above a whisper. Their eyes never left the other. “People like you only exist in fairytales.” She stated. “Perfect people.” 

“I’m not perfect.” Sooyoung denied immediately.

“But you are. You’re too perfect.. it scares me.” She confessed. “I often wonder if I’m even good enough to have someone like you.” 

Sooyoung frowned immediately at that, somehow pulling Jungeun closer. “I’m all yours. There is no competition Jungeun-ah.. I’m not perfect. But you are. In every sense of a human being, you are perfect. You’re no fairytale to me. You’re real, and you’re human.. you’re beautiful and everything anyone could ever ask for.” She caressed her cheek gently. “This earth should be fucking eternally grateful to have someone like you in it, my love.” 

Jungeun nearly started crying after hearing that. She kissed Sooyoung softly, her hand pressed gently against her cheek, holding her in place as she melted into Sooyoung’s lips once again. “Sooyoung..” She called out.

“Hm?”

“I-I love you.” She confessed, feeling her mouth go dry and her throat close up when she let those words leave her mouth. It wasn’t that she didn’t mean it, but she wasn’t sure if it was the right time to do that. She froze up, and Sooyoung’s silence nearly sent her running out of the room. 

But the second she moved, Sooyoung grabbed her by the wrist, sitting up and smiling at her. “I love you too Jungeun.” She finally said, and Jungeun felt the weight of the world leave her shoulders. “I love you so much.” She added, pushing the girl down playfully and getting on top of her. Kissing her all over and making the girl below her laugh hysterically. 

_**//** _

Sooyoung lied in bed, the room dark as Jungeun showered. She let the water hit her skin and completely drench her hair. When she looked down at her body, she smiled cheekily. There were red marks all over. She shook her head. “Ahh.. Sooyoung..” She muttered, rinsing the soap from her hair and then her body. When she got out, she dried off her body and got dressed, stepping back into the room. It seemed like Sooyoung was fast asleep, so she tried her best to be quiet.

When she got in bed, Sooyoung instantly turned to face her again. Her eyes opened slowly as she softly smiled at the sight of Jungeun’s long wet hair. “You shouldn’t sleep with wet hair, you could catch a cold..” She informed, closing her eyes again.

“I know... I’m not sleeping yet.” 

“Sleep soon… it’s late.” She said tiredly. 

Jungeun didn’t respond, she just grabbed her phone and read a few messages and caught up a bit on social media. She thought Sooyoung was asleep by now, she hadn’t said much and she hardly moved either. And Jungeun’s hair was quickly drying as she used the towel to dry it a little quicker. “..Jungeun?” She heard a small voice, and she instantly turned in Sooyoung’s direction. “Do I make you insecure?” 

“What? Of course not.” She answered quickly, how could she think something like that? 

“Earlier… you said that you feel like you aren’t good enough for me.” She brought it up from their previous convo. “Did I do something to make you feel that way?” 

Jungeun immediately shook her head. “No. No, of course not baby. It’s just.. I’m not used to having someone… like.. _you_ in my life. I’ve never really had a good thing happen for me… so I often wonder if I deserve such a thing in my life.” 

Sooyoung sat up, kissing her so deeply she felt like she’d fall off the bed if she pushed against her any further. “You deserve everything. You deserve me, and I deserve you. That’s how this works. Don’t ever think you don’t deserve me, because I guarantee you deserve so fucking much. Do you understand?” 

Jungeun lowered her head, her cheeks red from the constant complimenting and uplifting comments. “I’ll try to learn to accept that fact.” 

“That’s better than nothing.” She said. “Come here.” She spread her arms, allowing Jungeun to lay her head on her chest and rest in her arms. She kissed the crown of her head, squeezing her gently and closing her eyes. 

If she could somehow treat Jungeun even better than she already did, then that was the plan. To help her get used to good things, because she deserved that. She deserved it and more.

* * *

Heejin had awakened still on the sofa from last night. Her back was against the arm of the chair, and when she looked down, Jiwoo was there fast asleep in her lap. There was an empty bottle of alcohol tipped over on the table and a few unfinished shot glasses. 

Sooyoung was still fast asleep, but Jungeun managed to find a way out of her arms without waking her. Her head was spinning and it ached terribly. The alcohol had definitely done a number on her. She could barely keep her eyes open. When she checked her phone, her heart sank. She had 10 unread messages and 15 missed calls. 2 of the calls were from her brother and one text was from him. The other calls and texts were from her mom, and she genuinely didn’t even want to read them. But for the most part, her mom was fucking pissed. 

She went downstairs, aiming for the kitchen until she heard the radio still on in the living room. Her eyes were still low as she turned it off, turning back to the sofa to see the predicament Heejin was in. 

“I uh— need a little help.” She whisper yelled, and Jungeun chuckled, walking over to the two girls. She patted Jiwoo’s back, waking the girl instantly. Jiwoo instantly sat up, her eyes still a little closed as she wiped the drool from her cheek.

“Wake up.” Jungeun said, turning away. 

“Sorry.” She apologized to Heejin, patting her clothed thigh and sitting up. 

Jungeun immediately got herself a glass of water, downing it to quench her thirst. She felt terribly dehydrated at that moment. Jiwoo arrived in the kitchen moments later, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. “My back hurts.” She complained, walking over to Jungeun.

“You did sleep on a couch… on a human being.” Jungeun pointed out, taking a pill to get rid of her migraine. “I have to get home. My mom has been blowing up my phone.. she’s going to kill me.” 

“I’m sure she’ll understand, I’ll just tell her you were at my place.” Jiwoo quickly said. 

“Well–, that’d require me to be home first. I need to go and get cleaned up and we need to leave.. as soon as possible.” 

When she got upstairs, she quickly changed into some other clothes, scanning her body in the mirror and grabbing makeup. Her neck was completely destroyed from Sooyoung’s relentless attacks on it the night before. By the time she finished, Sooyoung had awakened, coming into the bathroom and holding her from behind. She rested her head on Jungeun’s available shoulder, her eyes closed. 

“Leaving me so soon?” She mumbled and Jungeun sighed. She desperately wished she could stay here forever. But that was impossible. At least for now. 

“Unfortunately… my mom was blowing up my phone all night. I was drunk and asleep.. I missed them all. She’s going to kill me.” 

“Hm… Upsetting the future mother in law already..” She mentioned, and Jungeun lifted her head slightly, seeing Sooyoung kissing her softly on her exposed shoulder. 

“Mother in law? You plan on marrying into the family? Through my brother? You’re dedicated..” 

Sooyoung scoffed. “Who said it’d be through your brother?” 

“Y-You want to marry me?” 

“I intend to. One day.” She smiled. “But i’m not that crazy. Maybe one day.” 

She couldn’t deny the way that made her feel. The idea of being completely committed to Sooyoung more than she already was.. it was something else. But she didn’t deny the fact that she liked the idea of it. “I need to go.” Jungeun turned to Sooyoung, kissing her cheek. “I’ll let you know when I’m home.” 

Sooyoung pouted cutely. “I’ll miss you too much..” 

“I’ll miss you too.” 

“I love you.” Sooyoung said, holding Jungeun close to her as she leaned against the counter in the bathroom. 

“I love you too. Get cleaned up, and get some proper rest, you’ve had a long night.” Jungeun demanded. “Bye.” 

“Bye my love. Get home safely.”

* * *

“I had a really good time with you Jiwoo.. thanks for everything.” Jungeun said, hugging her friend.

“It’s not a problem. Make sure to get something to eat, and get some rest. Your body is probably exhausted after yesterday.” She smiled, her hand patting Jungeun’s head before she got out completely. She waited for her friend to walk to her home, opening the door before she drove off. 

Jungeun could hear her heartbeat in her ears the moment she shut the door behind herself. Her brother wasn’t home, she noticed when she arrived home, his car wasn’t in the driveway. Neither was her father. He was most likely at work. The house was terribly quiet, and she prayed Yerim was home. She’d feel better with her there and not just being alone with her mother. She was pleased to hear music coming from upstairs, it was 100% Yerim. She tiptoed up the stairs, praying the stairs didn’t creek. But the moment she hit the top step, a room door was opened. She shut her eyes tightly, her heart sinking at the sound of her mother’s voice. 

“Where have you been?” 

“I was with Jiwoo.” She shakily said.

“You ignored all of my calls.” She pointed out. “You missed family dinner. You didn’t even get to say goodbye to your dad.” 

“Mom I was hanging out with friends.. why do I have to attend every dinner?” 

“Because this one was special. Your father is going to be gone for a week.” 

“It’s like he’s never here anyway.” She muttered, hearing her mother walking over to her.

“I don’t know what your problem is lately. But you seem to be losing your sense of respect and basic manners to your family. You hardly speak to your sister, you just go out and about. What are you even doing outside? You don’t have friends.” 

“I do.. I have friends.” Jungeun mumbled. 

“Do you have a boyfriend? What are you doing? Having sex before marriage? Is that the issue? You’re spending your time focused on boys instead of your family and school.” 

“I’m not even in school right now. We’re on break. I just wanted to have some fun with my friends.” Jungeun tried to walk off, but she was grabbed by her hair and pushed to the wall.

“You missed dinner, and until you learn to fucking prioritize, you’re not allowed out anymore until I say so.” 

Jungeun scoffed, rubbing the back of her head. “That’s ridiculous!” She shouted, a hand coming her way before she could even react. Her eyes instantly watered as the force of the slap knocked her to the floor. Her mother stood over her, moving to hit her again but Jungeun put her hands up quickly. Shielding herself from another hit that didn’t come. 

“Do not leave this fucking house again until your father comes back home.” She walked off, and Jungeun didn’t dare to say another word. 

Yerim stepped out of her room slowly, walking over to Jungeun. Her heart sank when she watched her sister flinch away from her. “It’s okay.. It’s okay.” Yerim coddled her, helping her off the floor and to her room. “I’m so sorry…” She held her sister as tears fell down her cheeks but she didn’t make a sound. She didn’t even blink. She just stared ahead, allowing herself to be held by her sister. 

_**//** _

“No it’s just, I haven’t heard from her in a week.” Sooyoung mentioned as she stood at the front door. 

Younghoon turned around, looking up the stairs and pulling her inside. He quietly shut the door behind him. “She uh… she hasn’t been talking to any of us. She’s been up in her room for days now.. Jiwoo couldn’t get her to talk either, so don’t expect much.” Sooyoung moved him aside, but he grabbed her by the wrist, stopping her. “My mom is home… she’s been acting really weird lately.. just be careful.” 

Sooyoung removed his hand, quickly going up the stairs. She could hear shower water running, but Jungeun’s room door was still closed. The girl walked towards her door, knocking gently. When she didn’t get a response, she slowly opened it, walking in and seeing Jungeun sitting on the bed. She wore pajamas as she sat criss cross in bed, perfect posture, and empty eyes staring at the wall in front of her. “Babe..” She shut the door behind her softly, walking over to Jungeun, unsure of what to do.

Should she touch her?

Hold her? 

...Speak even?

She was just stuck, and it broke her heart to see Jungeun that way. Those empty eyes, a void in them. She missed the brown eyes that were full of love and life. “Baby.. hey… is everything okay? I’ve been calling, and texting… I’ve been worried. I tried not to come over but I-I can’t...” 

When Jungeun didn’t respond, she exhaled lightly. “I love you.. if you need me.. if you need something, just tell me. I’ll do it for you. I’ll get it. Just.. please speak to me okay?” 

Silence.

“I love you… you’re scaring me.. did someone hurt you..?” 

Jungeun released a long breath of air. But still, her eyes stared at the wall ahead of her. “Jungeun… I love you.. this isn’t like you. I care so much about you.. you mean the entire world to me. You’re the most beautiful human being in existence, inside and out.. this isn’t like you.” 

Jungeun’s eyes slowly moved to meet Sooyoung’s and she could see tears welling up in her girlfriend’s eyes. She smiled with relief, her hands still caressing Jungeun’s cheeks softly. She kissed her softly. “Please speak to me.” 

Jungeun just stared for a moment. Her eyes slowly became softer. They just stared at each other for a moment, before Jungeun slowly leaned in, kissing Sooyoung softly. “I didn’t mean to worry you I just—“

“Who hurt you?” She immediately questioned, seeing the slight swelling and bruising of her face that hadn’t gone down, despite Jungeun trying to cover it with makeup. The girl moved her face away when Sooyoung raised her hand. “Did your mother do this to you?” 

Jungen nodded. And the girl quickly moved to hug her, her arms holding her tightly and for the first time that entire week, Jungeun felt safe again. She hugged Sooyoung back, resting her healthy cheek on her shoulder. “I won't let anyone hurt you again. Do you hear me?” 

“Sooyoung.. you can’t protect me from this.” 

“I can.” 

“ _You can’t_. And I really wish you could. But I’m going to have to ask you to stay out of this.” She pleaded. “You’re not even supposed to be here.” 

“I came to see you.” 

“But it’s risky being here right now. I’m not allowed out, and I’m not allowed any guests until tomorrow..” She explained. To Sooyoung, that was the most ridiculous thing she’d ever heard. Jungeun was an adult and her mother was treating her like some child, a disobedient child at that. Jungeun did nothing wrong in her eyes, and considering how non confrontational she was, she highly doubted her girlfriend made a fuss.

“Then I’m coming back tomorrow too. Call me before you go to bed tonight. And don’t ever scare me that way again.” She kissed her softly on the lips, and then her forehead. “I love you.” 

“I love you too.” 

Sooyoung looked around. “So should I leave out the front or should I hop out that window like we’re in a teenage romance movie?” 

Her heart jumped when she saw Jungeun slightly smile at the joke. She loved Jungeun, and she’d do anything to make her happy. 

_Anything._

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hopefully that wasn’t too messy or confusing. As I said before, I promise to post part 2 as soon as possible. Please be patient with me! Take care ❤️! 
> 
> And dont forget to comment, if you’re shy that is okay. I just like to see people giving me feedback and such. But if you don’t comment thats okay too. I hope you still enjoyed and are taking care of yourself. Bye! ❤️


	4. Part 2

* * *

It's been a few months now, and the girl’s shared their first thanksgiving together. Jungeun ate with her parents before going over to Sooyoung’s place later in the night with Jiwoo. Heejin was there, and surprisingly, Jinsoul was too. They spent the entire evening eating the food Sooyoung had cooked, and had a few glasses of wine. As the night sank in, they sat together in the living room watching movies and talking for hours. 

Around Christmas, Sooyoung had taken Jungeun to a snowy resort, relaxing in a comfy cabin together for an entire weekend. Jungeun didn’t even know how she managed to get away with that, but it was probably the fact that her mother was far too occupied with her father recently. He’d been accepting more jobs, and as the months passed, he was less present, and truthfully, so was her mother. 

For Christmas, Jungeun made Sooyoung promise weeks before to not buy her anything expensive. Of course, it took weeks before Sooyoung got over her stubbornness and followed her girlfriend’s wishes. But still, she did her best to make Jungeun’s christmas special. 

Sooyoung as expected, was somewhat of an expert at snowboarding. Jungeun… she kept falling the entire way down, and by the end of the night her body was being tended to by Sooyoung. Bringing her pain medicine and preparing tea for her. And an ice pack on the bruises that formed on her legs from so much falling. She removed her rings, placing them onto the wooden coffee table. She sat down on the sofa, the entire time she massaged Jungeun’s aching feet, she smiled at her, listening to what she had to say and what was on her mind at the moment. Her eyes never left Jungeun’s face, which she could tell had somewhat of an effect on the blonde. She constantly made sure her eyes were elsewhere. On the ceiling, closed, at the fireplace across from them. Anywhere but those brown eyes, constantly searching for hers.

“I have something for you.” Sooyoung smiled, gently placing Jungeun’s foot onto the sofa.

The blonde sat up immediately, her eyebrows furrowed. “What? Sooyoung.. I said no more presents.” 

“I know. I know.. but I can’t help it. Plus, you’re going to like this one.” She smiled, handing a wrapped box over to Jungeun. She rested her back against the arm of her chair, seeing the excitement in her eyes as she waited patiently for her to unwrap it. The blonde took her time, unwrapping it to see only a brown box, with no names on it. Not even the company of which Sooyoung bought the gift from. When she opened the top, her heart melted. 

There were 2 smaller boxes inside, and beside them lay a book with Jungeun’s face on it. Obviously a photo taken by Sooyoung that Jungeun wasn’t even aware she’d taken. It was when they went out onto a boat ride together at night, the waves were calm, and Jungeun was beautiful with the moonlight perfectly lit on her smooth skin. She wore a white dress and a bracelet Sooyoung had given her that day, it belonged to Sooyoung, but Jungeun liked it so much she let her wear it. She could never deny Jungeun, even when she didn’t outright ask for something. She grabbed the book, and the moment she held it, 3 envelopes fell out.

“One from me, Heejin, and Jiwoo.” She smiled. “You don’t have to read them right now. Open the book.” 

Jungeun nodded, opening the book and feeling her body warm up immediately at the sight. It was pictures of not only her, but her friends. All in polaroid form. There were some from the night they went to the carnival with Exy, which she noticed had the said girl’s signature and a tiny sentence saying ‘I love you’, just before it. “How did you…?” 

“I’ve been working on it for a few months now.” She admitted. “I made sure to document everything we’ve done together.. for when you’re feeling down or…” She didn’t even have to say the next part. 

Jungeun understood, smiling softly at her. “Or when you need to be reminded that you’re not alone, and you’re not weak, or anything of the sort.. you’re worth so much more than what your parents reduce you to.”

“Sooyoung…” 

She shushed her. “Don’t worry. Keep going. You have two other gifts.” 

Jungeun continued on with the book, smiling at each page, especially the pages that had just her and Sooyoung on it. She never knew what it was like to be in love, not until she met Sooyoung. And just through these images their love was expressed. Her favorite one was the picture of them kissing while Sooyoung held her championship trophy that she’d won back in August. The book was endless however, and if she kept going she wouldn’t finish looking at it until the next day. So she closed it, kissing Sooyoung so softly the taller girl felt like it didn’t even happen. Her eyes were closed, and when she opened them, her heart seemed to stop working when Jungeun eyed her gently. “I love it, I love you.. thank you.” 

The red head just smiled in response, watching as she placed the book down and grabbed one of the boxes. Sooyoung had to fight the urge to say anything because she knew Jungeun would disapprove of the next two gifts, but she just couldn’t help herself. When she opened it, her eyes were met with a silver heart necklace, from the naked eye, it wouldn’t look like anything out of the ordinary, except the necklace was made with expensive silver. There were diamonds in the heart itself, not cheap ones of course, but she wouldn’t care either way.

Sooyoung as a person was far more special and expensive than any other gift she’d received. “Sooyoung..” 

“I know— but look at the back.” And Jungeun allowed herself to be swayed. She turned the necklace around and felt her eyes watering. It was their initials engraved in the back.

_J + S_.

It was simple but it meant the world to Jungeun, and of course Sooyoung. “I was indecisive and if it were up to me I’d have bought every single one of the necklaces I saw.. but _Jinsoul_ helped me pick this one out.” She informed. “She said that design was more special and elegant.. and that you weren’t too big on flashy things anyway.” 

“It’s been a while since I’ve spoken to her.” Jungeun pointed out, still eyeing the necklace. But Sooyoung switched the topic, quickly standing up and offering to put the necklace on her. Her mouth watered at the sight of Jungeun’s exposed skin. She’d flipped her hair to one side so Sooyoung could see better. Her fingers grazed Jungeun’s skin, sending shivers down the blonde’s spine as she allowed the woman to place the necklace on her. The jewelry was cold, but it was combatted quickly when she felt Sooyoung’s warm lips against her skin. How could she resist her? 

Sooyoung was quite literally like a hormonal teenage boy at times. But she was much kinder, and loving. Besides, Jungeun wasn’t some average girl. She was smart, she was kind, she was beautiful, and she was Sooyoung’s. She was all for Sooyoung to kiss, hold and tease as much as she liked. 

When it was put on, her fingers grazed the diamonds on the front, smiling to herself. “I’ll let it slide. But don’t get comfortable.” Jungeun warned, unable to hide her grin. Sooyoung chuckled, sitting back in her spot on the sofa. There was one last gift. 

Jungeun didn’t waste any time opening it, and she was confused to see a note there, covering the gift beneath it. 

_Don’t be mad..  
Sooyoung xx _

Jungeun looked over at her, before back down, surprised to see a car key looking back at her. “ _Sooyoung_ —“ She said sharply.

“Now before you get mad.” She leaned forward, placing a hand on Jungeun’s knee. “I want to say that I didn’t buy this car, It’s my old one.. the bugatti. My parents bought me a new car for christmas.. so I wanted to give you this one.” She smiled. 

“Sooyoung that car is so expensive—“

“But it’s not new. That makes it better right? I didn’t go to a car dealership and buy you a new car with fresh crisp documents to go with it okay? It’s in good shape, I’ve had it for about 2 years, and the paperwork is taken care of anyway. Just don’t get into a car accident with it…” 

“Jesus.. What am I going to do with you?” Jungeun questioned, seeing Sooyoung cutely shrug.

“Usually people say thank you. But I know you better than that. But I do however accept kisses as a form of payment.” She winked. Jungeun took that as her cue, jumping on top of her girlfriend and kissing her deeply. Sooyoung just laughed, allowing it to happen as they made out on the sofa. Knocking the box onto the ground too. They quickly removed their tops, desperately running back to each other’s lips once they’d done that. 

“I don’t think the sky fairy is going to be too happy about us doing this on his birthday.” Sooyoung joked, and Jungeun just let her lips do the talking. She allowed Sooyoung to comfortably lay back slightly, her hands hungrily grabbing anything she possibly could as her tongue moved in circles on her chest. She listened for sounds of response for each thing she’d done to the girl below her. But the sound of her name cutely leaving Sooyoung’s plump lips was far more pleasing. So she wasted no time removing her clothes completely. 

And it was pleasing to see Sooyoung losing her mind while Jungeun was between her legs. Sucking and licking hungrily against her sensitive center. Jungeun was genuinely afraid the red head woman would rip her hair out at this point, and she was put at ease when Sooyoung reached her climax, releasing the grip on the blonde silky locks of hair. 

“You seem to be getting more confident in doing that.. I love it.” She smiled, kissing Jungeun softly before using tongue. Tasting every inch of her girlfriend's sweet lips and tongue. “Could you.. do it again?” 

And Jungeun didn’t hesitate. Not for one second.

_**//** _

They ended up laid out on the floor at some point with blankets and pillows. The fireplace felt good on their bare skin. Jungeun lay on top of her girlfriend as she slept peacefully. She missed her brown eyes already, she missed her smile, but most importantly her voice. The sweetest voice she’d ever heard. A voice that made her feel safe in a world like this. There were times where Jungeun was sure hearing Sooyoung’s voice was all she needed. 

She could hear the sound of Sooyoung’s heart beating, quietly but with such force. She wondered if she was dreaming about something, hopefully good things. Things that get your heart pumping, like a kiss. There was something about sleeping with the person you love. The warmth of their shared body heat, sharing a blanket and probably the same pillow (which was normal in their case because they hardly ever fell asleep apart). You always have the best talks before drifting off to dreamland; loving, funny, gentle. Those were the words she’d use to describe her before slumber talks with Sooyoung beside her. 

When you’re asleep, you’re defenseless, you’re vulnerable, and to be with someone you love and cherish in those moments is something she’d never be able to describe to someone. Not until they experienced it themselves. 

She slowly removed herself from Sooyoung’s body, missing her warmth already. It was unreal how someone could look so beautiful while asleep. Soft skin, light breaths, and messy hair, and still she was the most beautiful thing she’d ever seen. She sighed to herself, gently caressing Sooyoung’s face before moving away. Grabbing the letters she’d received. She sat up against the recliner behind her, holding the blanket up to her bare chest. 

The first letter; which was decorated with rhinestones and glitter on construction paper

_From: Kim Jiwoo, or Jiwoo-yah_

_My Jungie, I was told to write you a letter with things full of love. Buf if I do that, I think I would write a novel! Jungeun-ah, we’ve known each other for some time now it almost feels like I’ve grown up with you. In such a short amount of time you have become someone I love and cherish. Is it strange that I see you as a sister? Hmm… Well anyways, I promise to never leave you again if I have control over it. I know you missed me, and Its because I missed you too. Let’s stay together forever huh? I love seeing you happy Jungeun. It’s the best look on you. Take care. Stay Healthy. And remember I am a phonecall away, if you need hugs or kissies or a laugh. I’m your girl. Love you. Merry Christmas <3 <3 <3\. _

Jungeun laughed to herself quietly, placing the letter gently aside. Grabbing another envelope.

The second letter; it had a smiley face on the front, and when she unfolded the letter, another paper dropped out. She looked at it with confusion before opening it, and her smile somehow grew bigger. There was a very detailed drawing of the two of them on simple white paper. She had no idea Heejin was this talented. The drawing was of them sitting down studying underneath a tree like they always did on campus. 

_From: Heejin, or Muscles (as you’d like to call me)_

_I’m not good with stuff like this, even Sooyoung and I don’t do these things. But for you, I will try. Through my amazing friend and sister, I met another amazing friend. Did you know that I think you’re so cool? I’ve never seen someone so calm and laid back, and yet so passionate about what she thinks and feels. Thank you for making my friend so happy, you’re a light in not just her life but also mine. I think over the past few months, we’ve gotten closer to each other. Mainly because we both share the same mutual interest and threat to our sanity; Ha Sooyoung. LOL. But yeah, the mushy stuff isn't for me but I just wanted to say that I appreciate your existence and I hope you have a merry christmas, and also a happy new year. Cheers to a healthy year for us all? Bye <3 _

Their relationship wasn’t complicated, it was mutual and it was nice. Heejin understood Jungeun on a different level, mainly because they were the same in so many ways. Heejin had become a study partner for her as well that semester. They hung out a lot more, went out for food, went to libraries, sat with each other at campus and attended Sooyoung’s games together. Their friendship was something that didn’t need to be talked about, so she appreciated Heejin trying to make sense of it on paper.

Now it was onto the next one. Sooyoung’s. She wasn’t quite sure if she was ready to read that one. Her eyes traveled over to the sleeping girl, who had now turned onto her side facing the opposite way. Her beautiful back on display, a line down the center that was abruptly cut off by the blanket she wore. How could someone just be beautiful in every way? How could someone have a fucking beautiful _back side_? It just wasn’t fair. And it certainly wasn’t fair to Jungeun’s mind and body, because of the way it made her feel. 

She opened the letter, smiling at the amount of hearts the girl had aimlessly drawn on the top page. Sooyoung’s handwriting was the neatest she’d ever seen. But maybe that was just because she wanted Jungeun to be able to read every bit of the letter. And truthfully, it wasn’t that big of a letter surprisingly.

_From: Sooyoung, Sooyoungie, Your Love, Your amazing, awesome, and extremely talented girlfriend who loves you_

_I’ve sat here for hours now with this pen in my hand, trying to find the right words to say. It shouldn’t be this hard to write a letter to someone, but I find it to be the most difficult when it comes to you. Because there aren’t enough words in the world to describe you, and writing them in a letter doesn’t even compare to being able to live it and breathe it, and see it with my own eyes. To feel it with my own beating heart. So I’ll just simply say, Jungeun, you’ve been an amazing part of my year. Honestly the best part of it. The trophy comes second, because in my eyes, I’d already won the best prize me or anyone else could ever ask for. You. It’s our first christmas together, and a month ago it was our first thanksgiving together._

_I’d like to have many more firsts with you. I’m sure the world has many more things to offer us, to experience together. I’d like to say I’m looking forward to that. I’d also like to say thank you for allowing me to spoil you no matter how many times you say no. I can’t help myself. Jungeun, let’s move into the new year together, and let's make next year better and succeed together. Let’s stay healthy, and in love, and passionate about our life goals. Keep letting me spoil you next year too please? :) I love you my hot sexy smart girlfriend. Merry Christmas, hopefully you read this while not in the same vicinity as me. Bye :)_

Oh Sooyoung… What am I going to do with you?

* * *

When New Years came around, thankfully her mother was too drunk to notice her leaving out. If there was one thing she appreciated about her mother’s new love for alcohol, it was unawareness to the world around her once she’d drank too much. 

She’d like to not think about the downsides of it. She wore a black sparkly dress and some heels that made her feet hurt instantly. There was a college new year party being held at a rented penthouse, and Sooyoung was of course invited. Their other friends had other plans, mainly to be with family for that special occasion. What she liked about these sort of things, is that she never had to drive to the event alone. Sooyoung always made her come to her place first so they could leave together in one car. 

When she saw Sooyoung, her jaw had dropped to the floor at the sight of her girlfriend. They planned out somewhat matching outfits. Sooyoung wore a tight fitting black long sleeve crop top with leather pants and black heels. Not that she even needed them, but they definitely made her taller than usual. She could feel it becoming harder to breathe when she noticed the black choker on her neck too, a thin lace one at that. The usual ring jewelry on her fingers and silver earrings to match it. “Keep it in your pants. We haven’t even gotten to the function yet.” Sooyoung teased, before checking the girl out, holding her hand and making a twirl around. She inhaled sharply when Jungeun’s back side was facing her, because there was a cutout there, showcasing her perfect backside. “Damn.. how did I get so lucky?” She questioned, kissing her softly as if it was their proper way of greeting each other.

“I could ask the same thing.” Jungeun smiled. “Are you ready?” 

“Oh yeah of course.” She smiled, holding Jungeun’s hand and leading her outside. When Jungeun spotted Sooyoung’s new car, which she hadn’t noticed when she arrived, her mouth dropped. 

“Jesus Sooyoung, this looks like a damn supercar..” She pointed out, the black matte and the grill on the front. 

“It kind of is. Apparently there’s only 300 of these cars made in the entire world. Crazy huh?” 

“That’s _insane_ actually.” She huffed out. “I don’t even want to know the price of this.” 

“For the sake of your heart, I agree with that statement.” Sooyoung smiled. She helped the girl in before getting in herself and driving to the party.

It was about 10pm when they arrived there. Sooyoung stayed by Jungeun’s side for the most part, her hand on her hip as she talked to a bunch of people the blonde didn’t recognize. It was heartwarming though to see Sooyoung openly showing her off. Explaining that Jungeun was her girlfriend and even jokingly threatening a few of her friends that stared too hard. The entire time, her attention was on Jungeun. She had a few drinks, but nothing too crazy. She still had to drive them home after this. She allowed Jungeun to drink, however. 

They mostly stayed out of the way, and for the most part people flocked to Sooyoung anyway. Jungeun had been with her so much these past few months that she honestly forgot at times just how popular Sooyoung really was. She ignored the jealous feeling nagging at her when girl’s would shamelessly check out her girlfriend, even winking and throwing in a few flirting lines. It eventually became unbearing, but it made her heart nearly explode whenever Sooyoung would make it known she had a girlfriend that was there. It didn’t completely stop the flirting though, and at some point she kinda didn’t want the extra attention on her. Nor did she want Sooyoung to think she was some jealous bitch looking to be upset about something. 

The alcohol kicked in more and more as the minutes passed by, and Jungeun was feeling a bit more confident. Sooyoung had stepped off for a moment, leaving Jungeun on her own for a few minutes. The music had become a bit more sensual, an r&b sound that Jungeun personally liked. “Would you like to dance?” She heard someone ask, turning her head in the direction of the voice. The girl was quite beautiful to be fair, and she’d be lying if she said she didn’t want to dance. Not with someone per say, but in general, she’d been eyeing an open spot on the floor, where others danced as well. The woman was much taller than her as well, she had long black hair and wore a flowy dress with dark makeup. 

“I uh— I have a girlfriend.” She quickly announced and the girl smiled.

“I do too.” She pointed at a woman across from them, drunkenly falling over onto the sofa. “She obviously can’t dance with me. I won’t even put my hands on you, promise.” She smiled. 

“Okay. But just one dance.” Jungeun said sternly.

“Just one.” The girl said, leading Jungeun onto the dance floor. They danced with rhythm to the music, moving their hips around. They kept their distance for the most part, but at some point it became impossible not to be close, as the floor became more crowded. But Jungeun was drunk, and the music was hitting her in ways she’d never felt. That alcoholic beverage was definitely something serious. 

She was feeling the beat when suddenly she didn’t feel someone near her anymore. When she turned around, she was met with Sooyoung’s dark eyes staring at her. “Can't go without me for two minutes?” She teased, smiling at the girl in front of her. “Who was that?” 

“Umm I have no idea actually.. she just offered to dance.” 

“And you danced with her?” 

“Are you jealous?” 

“No.” 

“Uh huh.” Jungeun laughed, speaking loudly to be heard over the music. “Why don’t you dance with me?” The blonde questioned just as a new song started, and Sooyoung shrugged.

“Eh. I suppose I can dance with a cheater.” She teased, and Jungeun feigned offense, allowing herself to be held from behind by her girlfriend. They swayed along to the music, their bodies pressed closely against each other. When the beat got more intense, so did they, body rolling against each other rhythmically as if they were becoming one. Sooyoung swirled Jungeun around, pressing her forehead to hers as their noses briefly touched as Sooyoung eyes her like a wild animal, following her moves confidently and smirking at her. It was almost like they were the only people there. When the song stopped, Jungeun pulled Sooyoung out of the crowd and over to a wall. Her back hit it lightly and Sooyoung stood in front of her, her hand pressed against the wall behind the blonde with that alluring smirk present on her face.

Jungeun sighed, catching a few random eyes on Sooyoung. “Everyone keeps looking at you..” She pointed out, looking at the others. Sooyoung pressed her fingers gently under Jungeun’s chin, turning her back to her. 

“And I’m looking at you.” She subtly reassured her, kissing her softly, reminding her that she was all hers. When Sooyoung turned around, Jungeun hadn’t been exaggerating. They really were all looking at her. She turned back to Jungeun with a gentle smile. “Wanna get outta here?” 

“Fuck yeah.” 

_**//** _

It was 30 minutes until New Years, and Sooyoung was making phone calls to their friends, convincing them to come over and hang out with her and Jungeun. Jiwoo wasn’t able to come, explaining that her parents were holding her hostage. But Heejin made a beeline, wanting to be out of her house for once that day. Her family was driving her crazy. 

Sooyoung poured drinks for them all, as they waited another 15 minutes for midnight to hit. When Heejin arrived, she hugged Sooyoung so tightly she almost stopped her lungs from working. “Sorry I just— realized how much more bearable you are compared to my family.” She laughed nervously, stepping inside and seeing Jungeun. “Well you look amazing.” 

“Thank you… you seem very dressed up yourself..” 

“My parents forced me into this.” She complained, removing the party hat that said “Happy New Year” written on it. She placed it on Sooyoung’s head instead, grabbing the shot from her hand and downing it. “Mmm… so much better than champagne.” She said, wincing as the taste burned down her throat. 

“Jesus Heejin.” Sooyoung said, closing the door behind them and following her to the kitchen. 

“Please don’t even judge me. Today has been hell.” 

“Family will do it to ya.” Sooyoung agreed, pouring a shot since the previous one was stolen from her. She toasted with Jungeun, downing it and laughing at the way they both coughed afterwards. She couldn’t believe she couldn’t handle these shots by now. Jungeun checked her phone 5 minutes before midnight, not even noticing she was being called. She must’ve turned off her ringer by accident.

“Hello?” 

“Jungeun-ah! Open the door please~” She said cutely, and the blonde jumped up from her spot. Nearly falling over since the alcohol was definitely taking over. Sooyoung watched her with confused eyes, disappearing from the kitchen. She followed behind her, noticing she opened the front door. Jiwoo barged in, hugging her friend and lifting her off the floor a little. “Ah! It’s so cold out there!” 

“It is.” Jungeun agreed. Jiwoo caught sight of Sooyoung and quickly ran over to her, hugging her just as tightly. She attempted to lift Sooyoung up, but she didn’t get her very far off the ground. They watched the countdown on tv, 1 minute left now.

They poured some more shots, waiting for the final second to down them. And then shouting happy new year. Jungeun laughed at her girlfriend fighting through her coughs to say it. Her skin nearly became flushed in a matter of seconds. She looked so adorable wearing that hat on her head. Sooyoung pulled her in for a deep kiss, her hands resting on her lower back as she kissed Jungeun so hard she felt like she’d fall over. But as usual, Sooyoung held her in place. 

“Happy New Year, my love.” She said cutely, playfully nuzzling her nose against her cheek. The others ran over to them. Shouting happy new year and hugging each other. Eventually Jiwoo just formed a big group hug, wanting in on all of the love. Which none of them ever denied her. 

They watched movies together that night, drinking until none of them could stand without help. At some point, Sooyoung felt so fucked up she just decided she’d sleep on the sofa. Jungeun lay on top of her, while Heejin was sprawled out on the floor. Jiwoo was asleep in the recliner. That’s how they spent their New Years Eve.

_**//** _

Around Valentine’s, they celebrated both Jungeun’s birthday and Valentine’s day. Sooyoung couldn’t do as much as she liked, because Jungeun had been forced to stay home that day, helping her drunk mother cook dinner and watch Yerim. So she made sure to bring the girl her gifts on campus. Kissing her in front of everyone in broad daylight. “Didn’t even get to kiss you yesterday.” Sooyoung complained. “I can’t go a day without you.” 

“I know.. I’m sorry.. my mom lately she’s just been.. a lot.” The shorter girl apologized. And Sooyoung’s eyes softened as she fixed Jungeun’s hair for her. 

“You don’t need to apologize.” She smiled. “I’ll just have to do more for you on our 1 year anniversary in a few months.” 

“What did I say..?” 

Sooyoung sighed. “No big gifts.. no expensive trips, blah blah blah.” She mocked jokingly, receiving a playful shove from Jungeun. 

“I have your gift, it’s in my car though.” Jungeun winked. And Sooyoung’s eyes widened like an excited toddler. She followed Jungeun off campus to her car, watching as the girl put her gifts in the backseat. She pulled out a box too, turning to Sooyoung with a bright smile. “It’s not anything big.. since I’m not working right now. But I wanted to get you something.” 

Sooyoung gently grabbed the box, kissing her girlfriend just because she couldn’t resist her lips. “My love, you could bring me a piece of grass and it’d still be the best thing ever.” 

Jungeun’s face was flushed and she anxiously waited for Sooyoung to open her gift. When she opened the box, she smiled, exhaling loudly. It was a newer polaroid camera model with cute arts and craft’s items since Sooyoung had developed a liking for decorating polaroids. She also liked to take photos of Jungeun constantly, so she made sure to buy her loads of film. There was a letter at the bottom, and Sooyoung pulled it out. Jungeun’s heart instantly started racing when she saw. “Oh please…” Her hands covered her face. “Please not in front of me..” 

“Why? Did you write some mushy cute shit about me?” The redhead teased, placing the box onto the car and opening the letter.

“I’m going to walk away.” Jungeun said, moving to leave but Sooyoung pinned her against the car with her body. Holding her in place as she read the letter to herself. 

_To: Sooyoung_

_You know that ever since you came into my life, the sun shines more right? But to me, you’re the sun in human form. Your smile could quite literally save the world, your heart is made of gold, your voice is the most melodic sound I’ve ever heard. Did you know before you, I didn’t know what it was like to be in love.. to be loved? But you taught me that within a time period that most couldn’t with years. Because of you, I believe in love and happy endings. I believe in having a soulmate, because I like to believe that you’re mine. I like to believe we were supposed to meet one day, in the form of just friends or something more. From the first day I saw you, sure, I didn’t think we’d be here. I never imagined that in a million years I’d be with someone like you._

_But to this day; I’m so glad that you were so persistent. I’m so glad that you chose me to be the one you wanted to give your all. I’m so grateful for the wonderful things and feelings you brought into my life. These past few months with you have been the happiest moments of my life. You give me hope, you make me smile.. which can be hard to do. You make me laugh so hard my stomach hurts. The love you give me is so good.. and other things.. Those are very good too._

_But mostly, your love is the best gift I could have ever received. Thank you for coming into my life Sooyoung. Thank you for making my birthday worth something, and thank you for being my Valentine. I love you._

_-Jungeun <3 _

Jungeun could see the smile on Sooyoung’s face growing the more she read. Her eyes closed softly when she felt warm lips on her forehead. “So it _was_ soft mushy shit.” 

“Shut up…” 

“I loved it.” She kissed her. “I love you.” She kissed her some more until Jungeun physically had to push her away so she could breathe. 

“Get to class.” 

“See you later?” 

“Maybe.” Jungeun smiled, watching as Sooyoung walked off with her gift.

* * *

They were on yet another break, but Sooyoung was still playing basketball. As expected, her team was in the semi-finals again this year. They’d just celebrated Sooyoung’s birthday nearly two months ago, and their anniversary was next week. 

“Hey.” Sooyoung heard a familiar voice say, before looking up and seeing her dear friend Jinsoul. She looked… beautiful. Her dark hair had grown longer over the months, and at the moment it was wavy. She sat beside Sooyoung, smiling softly at her.

The redhead closed her book, putting it aside as she gave Jinsoul her full attention. “What’s up Jinsoul.” She smiled brightly. Jinsoul tried not to be affected by it. But it was nearly impossible. It wasn’t out of the ordinary for Sooyoung to make direct eye contact when she spoke to people. Her confidence was through the roof, but she always wondered if she was aware of what her smile and her eyes actually did to people. Specifically her. “It’s been some time.” Sooyoung pointed out and Jinsoul sighed.

“I’ve just been a bit busy with this law stuff. I’ll try to come around more.” Jinsoul assured, although even she wasn’t sure about that. “What are you studying?” 

Sooyoung hopped up instantly, her brain remembering what she was doing before her friend showed up. “I was just studying some of these plays for my next game. Looking at the game logs as well to find errors so I can talk about it with my team.” She explained, and Jinsoul smiled.

“You’re really still passionate about this basketball huh?” 

“Not much has changed.” Sooyoung laughed. “You should come around more.” 

Jinsoul softly laughed at that too. “Do you think you could make it pro?” 

Sooyoung shrugged. “I’d hope so, my stats this year have been quite literally perfect. I just have to finish out the season that way and I think I could have a huge chance of going pro.” 

“Well.. if it means anything.. I believe in you.” 

Sooyoung smiled gently, placing her hand onto Jinsoul’s. “That means everything.” 

Jinsoul just looked down at their hands briefly touching, trying too hard to ignore the way her heart would beat against her chest. And the way her lungs seemed to lose all air in them. Her body went numb when she felt that soft hand on hers, and her eyes lifted up, meeting Sooyoung’s intense gaze. 

“Hey guys.” They heard someone say, and Jinsoul immediately pulled her hand back. Heejin noticed, but she didn’t say anything. “Sorry did I scare you?” 

“N-no. Not at all.” Jinsoul lied. 

“Well, in that case, are we still going on that camping trip? I’m just asking so I can make sure my mom doesn’t have a reason to hold me at home this break.” Heejin quickly spoke.

“Well we’re trying to get people to confirm if they’re coming or not, but for the most part yeah… I know Jungeun is coming, and you. Not sure about Jiwoo though.” 

Heejin sighed, before turning to the other girl “What about Jinsoul?”

“Huh?” They both said at the same time, looking at each other in shock.

“I’m actually not too big on the outdoors.” She admitted, hearing Heejin sigh disappointingly. “But maybe the next time you have a little friend meetup at your place I’ll come.” 

“That’s not the same!” Heejin whined even more.

“Heejin— we’re going on the trip alright? You don’t need to harass everyone into admission.” Sooyoung calmed her, before checking the time and standing up. She grabbed her things as well, holding her gameplan book in her hand. “I have to get going. But it was nice seeing you again Jinsoul. You should come around more.” She smiled, ruffling Heejin’s hair annoyingly and walking off.

The girl had a displeased look on her face, fixing her hair in the process. She turned back to Jinsoul and sighed loudly, sitting beside her. “She notices you know?” 

Jinsoul turned to her. “I have no clue what you’re—“

“Yes you do.” Heejin cut her off. “We all do. Probably not her girlfriend. But we do, your friends do. She probably doesn’t know why either, but I also know that.” 

The taller woman laughed. “Heejin what are you even talking about?” 

“The feelings. They’re back aren’t they?” 

Jinsoul rolled her eyes. “Yeah, you’re losing it.”

“Jinsoul I’m not stupid. Sooyoung gets a girlfriend. You start acting funny, and suddenly you’re not around anymore.” 

“Me not being around has nothing to do with her.”

“Who are you trying to convince?” Heejin questioned, stunning her into silence. Jinsoul didn’t even know what to say at that point. She looked dumbfounded, quickly standing up and feeling Heejin holding her in place. “I get it. But you need to figure out what it is. I’m not losing a friend over something like this.” She said, and Jinsoul pulled her hand away, walking off without another word.

* * *

“You sure you want to go tomorrow? You must be tired from your game… and you hurt your ankle again” Jungeun pointed out as they sat on the back porch with her brother and sister. 

Sooyoung sighed to herself, removing the ice pack from her ankle and placing it on the table beside her chair. “I’ll be fine. Trust me. A few painkillers and I’ll be back to normal.”

“Or you could amputate it and get a new one.” Younghoon said, blowing out a puff of cigarette smoke.

“Ha ha ha. Very funny.” Sooyoung said sarcastically.

“I’d be willing to do the procedure.” Yerim added on teasingly, and Sooyoung rolled her eyes at their laughter.

“This isn’t a joke okay? I could lose my ankle and my entire basketball career will be over.” She said with a serious tone in her voice. They all looked at each other in silence. “Just kidding.” Sooyoung added, hearing them burst out into laughter.

Sooyoung came around more, which resulted in her getting a better relationship with Yerim. They hugged whenever they saw each other now, even talking without the presence of Jungeun. They’d grown comfortable around each other. Younghoon was the same as always, supporting his sister and lying out of his ass for her like it was his job. He also didn’t care though. He lied to his parents often anyway. Probably wouldn’t have to if they weren’t so overbearing. 

He just wished Jungeun would talk to him more. Despite their close relationship, she didn’t tell him much other than when it came to her relationship. He didn’t mind at first, but she seemed to be a bit more distant the past few months. Locking herself in her room for what seemed like days at time and coming back out of it as if nothing happened. As if it was something normal. Their dad also filed for a divorce about a month ago. He still stayed with them often, but even he couldn’t stand being around their mother. 

“I should probably go to bed. I have a part time job now.” Yerim explained.

“What? Where?” Younghoon questioned, and Yerim nodded.

“You know that flower shop grandma used to take us to?” She questioned, and he pretended to remember, but he didn’t. “I got a job there. For the summer. They pay decently.” 

“I believe you. Maybe I should look into something like that too.”

“You want to work? Why? I can get you everything you want.” Sooyoung said with furrowed eyebrows.

“Sooyoung.. independence is a thing.” Younghoon defended his sister. “And if you can get her everything, you should buy us an apartment to live in instead of this shit house.” 

“Already tried that. She won’t let me.” Sooyoung said defeatedly. 

“Ugh.” Younghoon grunted, putting his cigarette out and grabbing his beer.

Yerim stood up finally, “Well.. I’m going to bed. Goodnight guys.” The girl said excitedly, hugging them all before going inside. 

Younghoon cleared his throat before turning to the other two girls. “So how many times have you had sex now?” 

“Younghoon what the fuck?” Jungeun said angrily, kicking his chair and nearly knocking it over. He just laughed in response to her reaction, watching as she got up and grabbed Sooyoung’s hand.

“Just curious.” He laughed even more, not even bothered by them leaving him outside alone completely. He enjoyed being alone to be fair. So it wasn’t a big deal. He did enjoy the company of others too to be fair. But silence was his favorite, even when it ate him alive. 

_**//** _

When the girls had awakened that next morning, the sun wasn’t even up yet. Jungeun sleepily navigated around the room as she and Sooyoung got ready for their trip. They’d gotten Jiwoo to come along, and surprisingly Younghoon. Yerim would have come too if she wasn’t scheduled for work. “Hey.. come on baby. You can sleep in the car.” Sooyoung said, helping Jungeun off the bed. She carried her bag downstairs and out to the truck. She’d brought out her range rover this time around. 

When she came back inside, Younghoon was already awake and ready. “I’m grabbing my shit now.” He said, running up the stairs. Jungeun came down shortly after, still half asleep. Sooyoung didn’t mind though, she helped her out to the car and they waited for Younghoon to join them. Once he was there, they moved to pick up the other two girls. Sooyoung already had packed everything before she came over to Jungeun’s house.

Heejin was also half asleep, walking with her eyes practically closed. “Heejin. Younghoon. Younghoon. Heejin.” Sooyoung introduced them to each other. 

“Oh. Fake boyfriend.” Heejin said tiredly and Younghoon just lifted his eyebrows up and tucked his lips. 

When they picked up Jiwoo, she jumped out of the house and ran over to the car with her bags. She seemed to be the only chipper one along with Sooyoung that morning. It’d taken them almost two hours to get to their destination. All of them except for Sooyoung (obviously), and Jiwoo had slept the ride there. Once they arrived the sun had finally come up. Jiwoo stayed awake the entire time with Sooyoung, talking to her and sharing her favorite music with her. They had many things in common, like their favorite clothing types, food and especially music. 

“Hey.. we’re here.” Sooyoung gently nudged the blonde in the passenger seat, and then turned around to see Jiwoo waking up the others.

“Fucking finally. My legs are folded back here.” He complained. Despite the amount of legroom the car had, Younghoon was just too tall. He stretched the moment he got out of the car, and Sooyoung opened the trunk. “We’re probably gonna get killed out here.” He added.

“Not with you here hopefully.” Heejin pointed out as she stretched loudly. 

“No one is dying. We’re going to have fun!” 

Younghoon finished stretching. “Is she usually this hyper?” 

“ _All of the time_.” They answered him in unison. 

Sooyoung let the campsite people know they were there, and when she stepped out, she smiled at them, grabbing her and Jungeun’s bags. Younghoon carried the heavier things and Heejin helped as well. Jiwoo already had a load of things to carry that belonged to herself. As they walked, Younghoon started to complain. “Fuckkkk… how much longer is it? I’m tired..” 

“Maybe if you stopped smoking cigarettes your lungs wouldn’t be trying to run from you right now.” 

“Fuck off.” Younghoon said, groaning in frustration. 

It seemed like forever before they got to the area they were camping at. At least the scenery was beautiful. Younghoon stayed behind all of the girls, watching over them… and also he just wasn’t able to keep up in general. Sooyoung led them, Jungeun right behind her and the other two girls following closely. They’d finally reached leveled ground, it was a nice area with an almost cave like spot. Except it was covered by large stones. But from their spot, they could see a little further ahead, but unfortunately, it was just more trees. Younghoon dropped everything onto the ground, resting against a tree as he gasped for air.

“Is he gonna be alright?” 

“Mhm..” Jungeun responded, and as if on cue, Younghoon used his inhaler.

They all looked at Jungeun in disbelief and then back to him. Jiwoo cutely stood in place, rocking back and forth before speaking. “Um.. you have asthma and you’re smoking? Doesn’t that —“

“Look happy cheery girl, I know it's fucked up. But if you lived in our house you’d understand.” He explained and Jungeun laughed, because it was true. But she still wouldn’t resort to smoking. Drinking was okay sometimes. 

“He’s right. But it’s still bad for you idiot.” Jungeun shook her head.

“Should we start setting up?” 

“I need a moment.” Younghoon said, sitting down at this point. 

“Me too, honestly.” Heejin added on, sitting down as well. 

Sooyoung sighed. “I can help.” Jiwoo smiled, walking over to the two girls and grabbing an item from them. They began unpacking the food, putting it into a cooler with the ice they’d bought at the start of the trail. When Younghoon caught his breath, he helped put up the tents. He did them alone at first, and Heejin eventually joined him. 

“So how’d you meet Sooyoung?” He asked as he stomped one end of the tent into the ground, moving to grab a stone and place it on top. 

“School mostly, but we’ve crossed paths a few times before that, i’ve known her for a few years now.” She informed and he nodded. “And you?” 

“You know.” He chuckled.

“I do. It’s a little genius in theory.” She laughed. “How long do you think it’ll work?” 

“Well, in about a week, it will have worked for a year exactly.” He mentioned. 

“Have you seen the state of them? It’s actually nauseating sometimes.” 

Younghoon laughed in response, picking up a stone and walking over to Heejin’s end. He dropped it down, smacking his hands together to rid it of the dirt. “It is. But, I’d rather see my sister happy than how she was before. It’s different seeing her in this state.” He said. The both of them turned back to see Jungeun with complete heart eyes as she talked to Sooyoung. Her smile so wide on her face her eyes had closed at some point. “She deserves that.” 

_**//** _

After they’d set everything up, they made some simple rules. The signal out there was pretty bad, but they made sure to have some way of communicating. Besides; they didn’t plan to venture off too far from the campsite. Sooyoung had come beforehand and set markers around the path. “If you see a red apple drawn on a tree, it means you’re going in the right direction. And you have compasses. The camp is north. If anything happens, just run north and if you don’t end up here, you’ll end up at the main area anyway.” 

She handed them all compasses. She also made sure they all had bottled water and sunscreen. “So we don’t get any flare guns and shit?” 

“It’s a friendly camping trip, not a survivor show.” Sooyoung shut him down. “I trust you all. You’ll be fine. We’ll be fine. We’ll explore, and meet back here at 12pm for lunch.” 

“Good. That granola bar I ate is already sweating off of me from these walks.” Jiwoo pointed out, wiping fake sweat from her forehead.

“So you 3, back here at 12. Got it?” Sooyoung questioned, making sure they understand.

“Yes captain.” Heejin saluted her, making the other two laugh. Sooyoung just rolled her eyes, before letting them go off. 

“Bye Jungie!!” Jiwoo shouted, waving at the blonde. She turned back to Jungeun who wore a cute outfit that day. She had on jean shorts with a tank top, her hair up with a ponytail, exposing her collarbones and her neck. Not to mention the cute red backpack she sported. 

“How come we don’t have cute nicknames?” Sooyoung questioned as she let Jungeun lead the way, enjoying the nature around them as they traveled down the steep area. 

“Do you want us to have cute nicknames?”

“I mean.. yeah.. it’d be nice.” Sooyoung wore shorts as well, and a tank top. She wore a cute safari like hat too to protect herself from the sun, and also because it went with her outfit. She begged Jungeun not to ask her how much the outfit cost. She didn’t have the heart to tell her it was about $3000. She’d probably faint. 

“Okay. What do you have in mind?” The shorter woman asked, fixing her ponytail as she walked forward. Sooyoung honestly didn’t have a clue. She just liked the idea of having another name for Jungeun besides her actual name and the occasional pet names. They passed by a tiny little stream, where Jungeun noticed a few fishes. She moved forward for a closer look, and her heart jumped in excitement at what she saw.

“Sooyoung! It’s tiny frogs!” Jungeun said excitedly, placing her finger down and allowing the frog to jump onto her pointer finger.

“Baby be careful. It could be poisonous.” Sooyoung carefully looked over her. Seeing the cute creature on her finger. Jungeun smiled the entire time, watching as its throat inflated and then deflated. 

“Sooyoungie.. it’s not poisonous. Trust me, you’d know.” 

“I suppose..” 

Jungeun turned to Sooyoung now. “Would you like to hold it?” 

“Uhhhhhh….” 

“Don’t be afraid.” Jungeun said sweetly, making Sooyoung more nervous than the frog in front of her. She gently and slowly positioned Sooyoung’s finger, allowing the frog to jump to it. She noticed the way Sooyoung flinched, talking sweetly to her to keep her calm. “See? It’s no big deal.” 

“This freak is staring at me.” The taller woman pointed out, her eyes just as wide as the defenseless frog. “Does it bite? Oh god… please don’t tell me it bites.” 

“Sooyoung. It’s okay. You have nothing to be afraid of.” Jungeun calmed her, allowing the frog to be put back into her hand, before she gently placed it back into the stream. She watched as Sooyoung wiped her fingers onto a cloth she brought along. “You planned this trip and you’re afraid of nature?” 

“Afraid of nature? I’m just not a fan of slimy creatures on my fingers.” 

“Fair enough.” Jungeun laughed. “Let’s keep walking.” 

_**//** _

“She couldn’t give us a map?” Heejin complained, allowing Jiwoo to lead them. She stood a bit far back with Younghoon. They’d been walking aimlessly through the forest, unsure of where to even go. They walked by a cliff at one point, looking down at what seemed like more trees. 

“This forest is never ending.” Younghoon muttered, holding Jiwoo’s bag for her. 

“Hey I think we’re getting somewhere. There’s a clear path up here! Look!” Jiwoo shouted to them, and they quickly caught up, stepping out onto the flat ground. They looked straight ahead, seeing a small waterfall in front of them. “Wow. It’s beautiful!” Jiwoo said excitedly, moving to run off.

Until they heard a roaring sound coming from their left. They slowly turned, seeing a bear over by the quick stream, staring back at them on its hind legs. “This is not how I imagined I’d die.” Younghoon quietly said, hiding behind a tree with Heejin. Jiwoo slowly backed up as well.

“Hey bear.. you’re nice right? You won’t eat me and my friends… right?” She said nervously, cheesing the entire time as she backed up towards the other two. The moment they were back together, they quickly ran, not sure where, but somewhere that wasn’t there. 

_**//**_

Sooyoung walked ahead of Jungeun now, moving some branches out of the way as they stepped through the new opening. Her eyes widened, looking up at the giant waterfall in front of them. The area was so beautiful, the stream calm despite the crashing of the waterfall. 

“Holy shit…” Jungeun said from behind Sooyoung. She couldn’t believe what she was seeing. 

“It’s beautiful.” Sooyoung exasperated, before turning back to Jungeun. “We need to show these to the others later.. or tomorrow. They can’t not go on with their lives without seeing this…” 

It was like they were in some sort of paradise island. It was something Jungeun had only seen as a wallpaper somewhere on google or some other social media site. Sooyoung walked forward, putting her back behind her as she sat close by the stream, close enough to the waterfall to feel mists of water hitting her face and skin. Jungeun joined her, watching as Sooyoung closed her eyes and breathed in and out for a few moments. She knew Sooyoung had been quite stressed out due to school and sports. It was nice to just be outside, breathing in nature and experiencing the outdoors. Sometimes it was easy to get lost in your thoughts, feeling trapped and lost.

It was nice to be reminded that there was still an outside world. Places to be traveled and experienced. Like this. 

It was also nice to experience such things by the woman she loved. Jungeun wished things were always like this. Sooyoung felt the same. “We should do things like this more often, with our friends.” The redhead suggested, Jungeun scooted closer to her.

“Yeah… this feels like healing.” The woman agreed 100%. They sat for a moment, and at some point, Jungeun felt Sooyoung’s eyes on her. It was bound to happen. She was never able to keep her eyes off of her girlfriend for too long. Jungeun wasn’t sure she’d ever get used to it. But she was beginning to feel those pressing eyes whenever it happened. She could feel the intensity whenever Sooyoung eyed her, almost as if her stare was burning holes in the side of her head. 

“You know— I say this all of the time, but you can talk to me.. when you need me. About anything..” 

“I know.” Jungeun smiled softly.

“And I love you.”

“I love you too Sooyoungie.” 

“Ah.. Sooyoungie.. that’s cute.” 

“I think I’ve called you that before..” 

“Have you?” 

Jungeun shrugged. “I’m not sure. But I like it… your new nickname?” 

Sooyoung smiled. “Mhmm.. I like it too.” She chuckled, her eyes landing back on the waterfall. The sound of the water calming all her nerves. She slowly stood up, removing her shirt. When Jungeun turned, she froze at the sight of Sooyoung’s abs on display. She’s seen them a million times, and it still never got any easier to digest in her brain. She removed her pants as well, only sporting a sports bra and her underwear. She stepped into the water, gasping at the temperature as it shocked her body. The water was quite cold, but she didn’t mind too much. “Join me.” She said to the blonde.

“Sooyoung…” 

“Please? It’s safe.. I promise.” She reassured the woman. Jungeun sighed, giving in as usual. She stood up, removing her top as well. Sooyoung couldn’t take her eyes off the sight. Especially when Jungeun removed the rubber band from her hair, allowing the long blonde hair to fall down her back. She got into the water, gasping at the shock from the cold water. She walked over to Sooyoung, allowing her to pick Jungeun up. Her legs wrapped around Sooyoung’s waist, feeling her strong, warm hands holding her up, keeping her close. She leaned down slightly, kissing Sooyoung as the waves of the water slightly went by them. 

They felt so free in that moment. Kissing each other, allowing nature to surround them freely. They were so lost in each other, completely unaware of their surroundings. All Sooyoung could think about was the blonde woman’s lips against hers. The feeling of her body pressed against her body, trusting Sooyoung with her life at every moment. Trusting her to take care of the blonde woman. 

There was a thing or two Jungeun hadn’t revealed to her girlfriend yet. One being that her father filed for a divorce with her mother, and the other being that things had gotten much worse at home the past few months. Her mother was much more violent, not just to Jungeun anymore, but to Yerim as well. She never did anything to her brother, because 1. he was never home, and 2. He was much bigger than their mother, and stronger. She couldn’t be a bully to him. So she took it out on those two. She yelled at Yerim, hit her a few times here and there, but it wasn’t as bad as how she treated Jungeun at times. None of it was acceptable, but Jungeun being a literal punching bag the past few months was the worst thing to happen to her.

Her mother would bruise her up so badly she sometimes cancelled dates with Sooyoung, afraid she'd end up seeing the bruises on her arms and face. 

But moments like this, she forgot all about it. Because whenever she was with Sooyoung, she didn’t have time to think about how terrible things were. Her mind was occupied by the woman in front of her. She never really liked clingy people, but after meeting Sooyoung, she found it hard to dislike the constant attention. Sooyoung’s constant need to touch the blonde, it kept her mind on something else. The feeling of her lips on her neck, the feeling of her hands on her waist, her body against hers. She complimented her every second. It was impossible to think negative thoughts, and she was grateful for that. 

“I love you so much.” Jungeun said, kissing her deeply as the water came crashing down into the stream behind them. 

“I love you just as much.” Sooyoung smiled, kissing her back. They stayed like that for a while, just allowing their lips to do the talking, their hair getting wet and their smiles coming to light as they enjoyed each other’s presence.

It wasn’t until they heard a sound coming from the woods. The sound of leaves crunching and the brush of the forest being forcefully ran through. As if on cue, Younghoon emerged from the trees, landing hard onto the ground. He landed on his ass hard, his hair a mess and his breathing uneven as he swallowed hard, watching as Heejin and Jiwoo immediately emerged from the brush as well. 

“Well… it looks like we won’t need to show them this area anymore.. they managed to make their way here.” Sooyoung pointed out, slightly disappointed at the blonde moving back to the land, helping the others. 

_**//** _

Sooyoung and Jungeun followed behind the other 3, their hair still dripping wet from the water. Jungeun was a bit cold, the water still dripping down her skin as they traveled back to their site. 

“We were on the verge of dying to a family of bears while you two were being lovebirds under a waterfall.” Heejin shook her head. 

“Look, I wasn’t expecting you guys to nearly die.” Sooyoung laughed, keeping Jungeun close to her. 

When they got back, they prepared lunch together. Roasting meat and conversing. Sooyoung placed a towel around Jungeun and kissed her cheek. She noticed Jungeun was cold, the water probably still dripping from her blonde hair. It took everything in Sooyoung to keep her hands to herself seeing Jungeun that way. Her long blonde locks soaked and random strands clinging to her beautiful skin. Sooyoung smiled at her, before turning back to Younghoon.

“You really love her huh?” 

“Uh…” 

He laughed, roasting a few more pieces of meat. “It’s a good thing.” He flipped the meat over, exhaling loudly. “I never believed in love. I think it’s bullshit to be fair.. but whatever you have with Jungeun, that’s real.” 

“Thank you for the kind words fake boyfriend.” She patted his shoulder and he side eyed her.

“My point is, she’s into you, on some other level… I won’t allow you to hurt her, not without you facing consequences.” 

“And what if she hurts me?” 

Younghoon turned to the fire in front of him again. “She would never.” 

_**//** _

That night they lay under the stars, peacefully laying side-by-side. They thought about the day, and what tomorrow will bring. It was the first time they felt like they could breathe. They used the trip as a stress reliever. Releasing all the negative energy that they had. Jungeun lay beside Sooyoung, trying her hardest to not stare. It was moments like this where She could really relax. Sooyoung made her forget all of the bad things. She could never repay her, not in this lifetime at least. It felt nice to be beside her friends and the love of her life after such a grueling past few months. It was almost as if the sky completely devoured all her bad thoughts. As if it were a black hole, taking everything with it as it left a hole in the sky, swallowing everything whole and disappearing into the darkness.

Younghoon had his own tent, Sooyoung and Jungeun shared one obviously, while Heejin and Jiwoo shared theirs. It was a comfy size, almost comfy enough to live in if needed. Sooyoung made sure to get the best ones, even if they were expensive. All they could hear around them was the sound of wilderness. They hoped nothing would come to attack them late in the night. Like a bear or wolves. But Sooyoung genuinely felt better having Younghoon there. He seemed to be ready to face _most_ dangers. 

Jiwoo opened the tent after brushing her teeth with a bottle of water, smiling at Heejin as she wore a comfortable pajama set. Heejin just smiled back, laying down on her side of the tent. Jiwoo noticed Heejin using a sleeping bag. At night, it tends to get cold, regardless of if you’re in the wilderness or not. She was curled up as much as possible, obviously trying to trap some heat for herself. Jiwoo frowned at that. “You can lay with me.” She offered, and Heejin slowly turned to her.

“No.. it’s okay. I really don’t want to be a bother to you.” 

Jiwoo shook her head, a look of worry on her face. “You potentially freezing to death would bother me more than this tiny thing.” She pointed out , and Heejin couldn’t really deny that. She patted the space beside her, and Heejin sighed, knowing she wouldn’t win this fight. She removed herself from the sleeping bag and lied beside Jiwoo. The smiley girl pulled the blanket onto her body, making sure she was warm. “Did you have fun today?” 

“I did. I wish this trip was longer though. It was the most relieved I've felt in forever. After this trip, it’s back to studying hard for finals and watching Sooyoung play basketball.” 

“What was your favorite part of today?” She leaned down, resting her head in her palm as she propped herself up using her elbow. Heejin just lay there on her back, staring up at the roof of the tent. 

“Other than being nearly murdered by bears? Hm…” Jiwoo laughed at that, and Heejin couldn’t help but smile. But she continued on, thinking about how good today was. Anything was better than being home 24/7. “Probably when we kept ending up at those cliffs.. the view was beautiful.. and it’s nice to be reminded that beauty still exists in the world.”

“You didn’t think beauty existed before today?” 

“Nature is a different sort of beauty.” Heejin responded. Avoiding Jiwoo’s eyes on her. 

Jiwoo smiled at her softly, resting on her side as she took in Heejin’s side profile. “I can agree with that.” 

“We need to get some sleep.” Heejin quickly said, noticing how quiet it was around her. The others must’ve fallen asleep already. All she could hear around her were the sound of crickets and the occasional wind blowing, rustling the trees and tiny branches on the ground. She hoped a bear wouldn’t come and eat her in her sleep or something. 

In the other tent, Younghoon was slowly drifting off to sleep, his body giving out after such a long day. He couldn’t remember the last time he was so talkative and active. He just knew, he was happy to see Jungeun so happy that day. The way she smiled brightly at Sooyoung, completely distracted by the woman. It was nice to see her outside of the depressing scene of their home. 

In the final tent, the couple quietly lay beside each other, able to see the night sky from their tent ceiling. The plastic layer covering it so bugs or leaves couldn’t make their way inside. It was crazy how even a simple sight like this couldn’t compare to the blonde’s beauty. Sooyoung would rather stay there and watch her the entire night. Taking in her delicate features and studying her cute mannerisms. Jungeun didn’t speak a word, her eyes twinkling as if she had stars in them. 

Sooyoung couldn’t explain the way Jungeun made her feel. Those soft eyes, her soft skin, those soft lips. Everything about Jungeun was beautiful. People always called her perfect, especially the ones she’d slept with.. or been with in general. The point was that Jungeun was the definition of perfect. She’d explain how but that’d take months to fully describe the way Jungeun made her feel and how beautiful she was. 

“The sky is so… endless.” 

“Scary huh?” 

“Extremely… could you imagine that? Going to the sky, experiencing that sight? The galaxy.. the moon and the sun… those planets…” Jungeun spoke, her eyes still focused on the stars above.

Sooyoung smiled gently, placing her fingers beneath Jungeun’s chin and turning her towards her. Sooyoung’s heart skipped a beat when those chocolate eyes met hers. “Every time I look at you, it feels like I’ve seen the moon and stars, just in your eyes.” 

Jungeun pushed her hand away, smiling so hard her cheeks turned red. “Don’t say things like that…” Jungeun shyly responded. 

“I like saying things like that.” Sooyoung kissed her softly, a quick peck before she was pulling Jungeun closer to her. 

“I know.” 

“I love you.” Jungeun smiled. 

“I love you too.” 

_**//**_

Younghoon’s eyes were still slightly closed as he followed the others. Wearing a pair of swim trunks, holding a bag full of essentials. When they finally got to the stream, Sooyoung turned around, smiling at them all. 

“I know you saw it yesterday. But it's prettier when you’re not being chased by hungry bears.” She smiled, removing her shirt and wearing another sports bra with her shorts. Jungeun just eyed her, smiling at the sight of her abs flexing with every movement she made. It left her in a daze, stuck for a moment until she felt her brother pat her back hard. 

“She’s sexy. We get it. Now focus.” Younghoon whispered; walking by her as he placed the bag down. He followed Sooyoung into the water, freezing up slightly at the change of temperature. “Shit!” He shouted out.

“It’s not that bad.” Jiwoo said, watching as he shivered like a wet dog.

“Maybe he’s anemic.” Heejin added, stepping in and instantly adjusting to the water temperature. She dunked herself under, allowing her face and hair to get completely drenched. When she came back to the surface, she pushed her hair back and wiped her eyes. “See— It’ll be less cold if you just move around and not stand there.” 

Younghoon rolled his eyes, watching as his sister finally stepped into the water, swimming over to Sooyoung who had her arm stretched out, ready to grab Jungeun’s hand when she got closer. Jiwoo followed behind Heejin, doing what she did and instantly popping back up to the surface. “I got water in my nose!” She squealed, making the rest of them cover their ears from the ear piercing sound. But Jiwoo hadn’t noticed, too excited to be in the water and play with the others. She began splashing Younghoon, who begged her to stop, but eventually Jungeun joined in too, splashing him. And then the other two joined in. Younghoon just stood there, taking the brunt of the attacks on him. Before he eventually lifted his arms up and splashed them all at once, making them squeal like school girl’s before they backed off.

“Oh my god!” Jiwoo shouted, splashing the others now as well. Sooyoung watched in amusement at her girlfriend being lifted up by her brother and tossed into the water. The blonde held her nose just before she went under, floating back up and gracefully pushing her hair back.

Sooyoung scoffed. “Oh no need to be sexy.” She said skittishly. Before going under the water herself, coming back up and mocking Jungeun’s previous movements. The blonde laughed so hard the sound didn’t even leave her mouth, she hit Sooyoung playfully, before jumping onto her. Sooyoung ended up under the water once again, with Jungeun on top of her. But Heejin came over, grabbing the blonde from behind and tossing her like she weighed nothing. 

When Jiwoo saw that, she moved over to them as quickly as she could, jumping onto Heejin’s back and falling backwards. They all laughed seeing the two fall underwater, before they popped back up like whack-a-moles, frantically running to clear their eyes of the water. “You’re gonna pay for that.” Heejin angrily said, but a smile was on her face the entire time as she chased Jiwoo around. They ended up closer to the waterfall than they originally were, and the others followed. Younghoon went right underneath the waterfall, but it was so strong it knocked him under, and when he came from under the water he was on the opposite side of them.

“Damn. Is it that strong?” Sooyoung questioned, turning from him and then back to the waterfall in front of her. She floated carelessly on her back, letting the tiny currents push her about. 

“Yeah! Don’t try it!” He warned, swimming over to her. The only thing she could see was his head above the water, and then he was underneath again. She didn’t worry too much though, he could handle himself. But suddenly she felt something on her back, and to her surprise, it was Younghoon lifting her up and out the water, tossing her aside as he laughed, flipping his hair out of his face.

“She didn’t even see that one coming.” Heejin laughed, and Jiwoo laughed along with her, leaning her head onto Heejin’s shoulder. Jungeun took notice of that, but she also took notice of the panic in Heejin’s eyes when the cheery girl did it. 

“I’m going to kill him.” Sooyoung threatened, her head above the water and her arms following suit as she pushed her hair from her face. The red hair looked good in this environment. It stood out much more surrounded by all of this greenery. But truthfully, Sooyoung just looked beautiful in general. Once Younghoon had his fun teasing Sooyoung, he went over to the other two, grabbing their legs and pulling on them while he was underwater. 

Sooyoung swam over to Jungeun, who was sitting idly in one spot, just looking up at the waterfall and taking in the beautiful spot Sooyoung had found. “You okay?” She heard Sooyoung questioning her, the sound of the water splashing as she allowed more of her body to rise from it. 

“Huh? Yeah. Just relaxing.” 

“All this water play has you tired huh?”

“Kind of. But we also came out here a little early.” Jungeun complained slightly. 

Sooyoung furrowed her eyebrows, looking down at her waterproof watch. “It’s 3pm.” She pointed out, and Jungeun looked at the watch to make sure she wasn’t trolling her.

“ _Oh_....” Was all she could say in response to that. It felt much earlier in her defense. Especially because she stayed up so late with Sooyoung, naming different stars and making up stories for them. Not to mention the way they couldn’t stop kissing each other, the both of them always wanting to be the last goodnight kiss. They both were stubborn in that aspect. 

“I found a nickname for you.” 

“Is that so? Let’s hear it then.” 

“You call me Sooyoungie.. So I'll call you Jungie~” She said cutely, her eyes wide like a puppy and her lips formed a smile. 

“Sooyoungie and Jungie? I like it.” Jungeun smiled, kissing her softly, before they were suddenly splashed by water. Jungeun raised her hands up in shock at the sudden attack, while Sooyoung groaned in irritation. But she immediately smiled at them all, splashing them back and chasing them through the water.

Jungeun just watched, smiling at the sight of the people she loved most having the time of their lives.

_**//** _

After they’d gotten out of the water, they walked back to their campsite, drying off and changing into different clothes. They put all of their essential things in one bag, like water, some snacks, etc. Younghoon offered to carry it on his back, and off they went. Sooyoung wore a black cap with some camouflage shorts and a black balenciaga shirt. 

Jungeun just changed into a white t-shirt and some grey shorts. Heejin wore a bucket hat to protect her from the sun while Jiwoo just wore a white adidas hat and a cute Adidas windbreaker. The hill started getting steeper, but they kept walking anyway, toughing it out so they could reach the top. It was worth it though, getting to the top and experiencing that view. They were all out of breath except Sooyoung, who just pulled out her camera and took a picture of the view. They could see over all of the trees now, to the point they spotted the main site in the distance. They then walked a bit further, in the distance they could hear the sound of rapid waters.

“That must be the main waterfall.” Heejin pointed out, lifting her head up so she could see from under the bucket hat. Jiwoo grew more excited the longer it took to get there, while Jungeun just trailed behind Sooyoung with her brother. Younghoon would continuously check on the two behind him though as they traveled through the trees and out into the open. What they saw was something you’d only see on a postcard.

There was a bridge that went across the waterfall so you could get to the other side. But all around them were trees and tall rocky mountains. Sooyoung stood at the bridge, turning back to all of them as they waited for her next move. “Heekie, come here.” Sooyoung called her out, noticing the girl hiding behind Younghoon. The shorter girl pointed to herself and Sooyoung gestured for her to come forward. “Hold my hand.” She said, reaching out for her best friend that she considered a sister. 

She knew Heejin was afraid of heights. So she allowed her to walk with her, while the others followed. Jungeun was directly behind them, while Jiwoo stood beside Younghoon, watching how shaky Heejin was as she walked forward. Sooyoung held her tightly, guiding her and telling her to look only at her. Once they got to the middle, Sooyoung stopped, and told Heejin to open her eyes finally. When she did, they were standing at the center of the bridge with a perfect view of the stream that the waterfall had created. A beautiful stream at that, creating the smaller waterfall they’d swam by earlier. 

Sooyoung pulled out her camera, and Heejin eased up on her body. She wasn’t so tense anymore. Sooyoung posed with the girl beside her, putting up a peace sign and Heejin smiled, doing the same. They took a few like that, before she invited the others over too. They took cute group photos with the waterfall in the background. Jungeun’s favorite was the one where Sooyoung was kissing her on the cheek as the blonde had the cutest scrunched up face in the direction of the camera. Another favorite of hers is when Sooyoung removed her hat, letting her hair flow prettily with the girl beside her. 

Sooyoung also took some duo selfies with Younghoon, who just stared at the camera for most of them with peace signs. But in one of them he cheesed brightly with Sooyoung, something Jungeun had never really seen in her life. And she lived with the damn boy. After they took pictures, they kept walking. Following the trails that led to the fun things. One of them being zip lining. They agreed to stay together, even if someone didn’t want to ride whatever it was they traveled to. 

Sooyoung was the first to get on the zipline. Kissing her girlfriend as she put on the orange safety helmet. The woman in charge of the zip lines made sure Sooyoung was safely secured for her trip down. And once she was sure, she waited for Sooyoung’s “okay”. 

“See ya on the other side losers.” She winked, saluting them as she was pushed off. They could hear her screams from there, making them all laugh, including the employee that watched. 

“Who is next?” The woman asked, and Jiwoo stepped forward excitedly. 

“Me! Me! Me!” She smiled, running through the others to get to the front. She bounced up and down impatiently as she had to wait her turn. 

Sooyoung was enjoying the view, despite it going by so quickly. She stretched her arms out, closed her eyes and breathed in the fresh air. When she got to the bottom, there was a man waiting for her arrival. He made sure she made it to the platform safely. He unbuckled her and asked if she was okay and she responded with the brightest smile.

“Wowww, that was so fun!” 

“Not many people look as amazed as you when they land.” 

“Ah really?”

“They look petrified.” He laughed.

At the top, Jiwoo was getting ready to go down now. She wore a yellow helmet. “Eeek! I’m so excited.” She laughed, still smiling. She waved at the others just before she was pushed down. And the entire time they could hear her squealing as she flew down the zip line.

“Is she always like that?” The woman asked.

“Yes.” They answered in unison.

“Oh wow.” She chuckled. “Who is next?” 

They all just looked at each other, and Jungeun decided to be the next one to go down. She was nervous to be fair, but she knew her Sooyoungie was down there waiting for her. Probably expecting her to show up soon. “I’ll go.” The blonde said, looking at the other two and walking over to the woman.

She got Jungeun ready for her turn, putting a red helmet onto her and making sure her belts were fastened and secure. She then waited for the man on the walkie talkie to give her the go, letting her know the zip line was clear and ready for the next person. 

“See you two scaredy cats on the other side.” Jungeun teased, before going down as well. She didn’t really scream, it was almost as if she was paralyzed by fear, but the fear immediately washed away when she came by the view. She hadn’t noticed she was up so high until she looked down, her stomach dropping as she closed her eyes. But she was on this now, and there was no backing out. And to be fair, Sooyoung would be there waiting for her. That would be her reward for being so brave.

She knew she was getting close when she could hear Jiwoo shouting excitedly as she noticed the blonde hair come into view. Sooyoung just smiled, taking photos as best as she could of each of the ones that rode the zipline. There were only two more of them now. 

“You’re brave after all.” Sooyoung jokingly said, kissing the girl and pulling her into a hug. She helped Jungeun fix her hair as well, while Jiwoo held both of their hands and waited for the other two.

Heejin and Younghoon just looked at each other. Honestly, he didn’t want to go, because as the guy of the group he felt responsible. So he didn’t want to go down and leave Heejin up here all alone. But if she wasn’t going, he wasn’t sure what to do at that point. 

“You know, if you don’t take the zipline you have to walk back the way you came, or take that trail over there all the way to the ending point.” The woman pointed out. “This is faster, and it's quick. It leaves no time to think and cry about it.” 

Heejin turned to Younghoon, putting her hat back on. “You have to go.” 

“No you.” Heejin stubbornly said.

“I _can’t_. If I leave you up here you’ll have to walk the trail alone.” 

“Then I’ll walk the trail.” 

“So you can get eaten by some damn bear?!” He exclaimed, and Heejin shrugged. Her eyes still shaking with fear. “Look, if you ride this thing, you’ll be happy you did it. But if you take this long ass trail to happy land, not only will they laugh at us, but you’ll regret not taking the zipline.” 

“Why don’t you just go?” 

Younghoon’s arms fell by his side and his face became deadpanned. “Did you listen to anything that just came out of my mouth?” 

“Honestly, I can barely think right now.” 

“Look— If you go, I’ll give you guys access to the jet ski’s over by the resorts. For _free_. And there’s a cool art cafe right beside it that I can book reservations for you.” 

“Art cafe?” Heejin questioned, her ears quite literally perking up at the sound of that. The girl nodded. 

Younghoon swallowed, desperately hoping the girl would just go down already. When Heejin took off her hat, handing it to him, he sighed with relief knowing he didn’t have to walk anymore. At least for now. He quickly put it in the bag, watching as Heejin got into place. The woman made sure she was secure, and even allowed Heejin to see for herself that everything was tightened and safe. She put a green helmet on her now, and even did a countdown for her before pushing her down. 

“See ya on the other side.” The boy waved, watching her go down. His knees nearly went weak from laughing at the ear piercing screams. She had to have awakened the entire animal kingdom with that one. The woman laughed as well, leaning against the wooden platform she stood on. 

“You next?” She questioned, and he nodded. “You’re gonna feel a lil claustrophobic going down because of your bag. But you should be fine.” 

Younghoon shrugged. “Are you serious about the art cafe and resort shit?” 

“Yeah. I wouldn’t lie.” She laughed.

“What’s your name then? In case I need to bring you up to the manager for false advertisement.” He said half jokingly.

She smiled. “Hyunjin. Kim Hyunjin.” 

_**//** _

Once they’d all gotten off the zipline and back together, Younghoon and Heejin told them about the girl up top, and the information she gave them. Sooyoung was surprised that such a cafe existed, she hadn’t seen it mentioned anywhere on the site. Or maybe they just hadn’t updated the site. They had to walk quite a bit to get to the jet skis, but when they did, they didn’t see the woman that suggested they go there.

They also realized she hadn’t lied about getting them a free pass. The moment they told the man in charge of the jetskis who sent them, he immediately got excited. “Oh the girl! It’s free for you guys because it comes out of her paycheck! She’s always doing that for customers. She’s a sweet girl.” The man said, and briefly gave them a safety lesson for the jetskis. They listened carefully, and shortly after they were preparing to get on them. 

Sooyoung and Younghoon helped them all with their life jackets. Making sure it was on properly before they got on. Jungeun rode with Sooyoung, while the other three rode on their own. She held on tightly the moment Sooyoung drove off, as if she was a professional that’d done this before. Sooyoung’s ability to do quite literally everything always amazed Jungeun. Her arms were wrapped tightly around her waist as they crashed against waves, plopping back down onto the water with fierceness. 

Sooyoung even managed to drift a little, the water splashing Jungeun directly in the face and making Sooyoung laugh in response. “Sorry!” She shouted cutely in english, throwing Jungeun’s train of thought off completely. 

Younghoon rode by the other two girls, purposely splashing them as he drifted around them. Heejin playfully flipped him off, and he moved on to mess with Sooyoung and Jungeun. But he found it nearly impossible to catch up with them.

While they played around, Hyunjin walked up to the man that watched over them. She smiled, patting him on the back. He turned to her with a smile as well. He was an older man, and he worked here for about 10 years now. Hyunjin worked there for 2 years now. This was mainly her summer job though, since she was taking college classes for her business major. “They actually came huh?” 

“Anyone that hears the word free comes running.” He laughed, playing with the toothpick in his mouth. 

“How long have they been out there?” 

He checked his watch and then looked back out at the water. “15 minutes. They have another 5 before I start calling them back in.” He explained. The two employees just watched until he began gathering back up, the first few to arrive back were Younghoon, Jiwoo and Heejin. When they hopped off the jetski, they giggled and talked about what had just happened. Jiwoo excitedly talked about when Younghoon sent water flying her way, completely drenching her. 

Heejin just stood there, ringing out her hair with a smile on her face. When she turned around, she was shocked to see the girl from the zipline standing there staring back at her. She awkwardly smiled at her, raising her hand slowly to give a skittish wave. Heejin waved back, smiling softly before she felt Younghoon’s hands on her shoulder, turning her to the couple that just got back to them. “Remind me to never get on one of those again with this girl.” Jungeun laughed, pointing at her girlfriend. 

Sooyoung removed her hat, shaking it as the water went flying off of the hat. Hyunjin walked over to them with towels, smiling softly at them. “Hey, you're the zipline girl!” Sooyoung pointed at her, smiling brightly. 

“Her name’s Hyunjin.” Younghoon pointed out. “She said there’s an art cafe around here.” 

“Oh you were serious about that?” Heejin asked her, and her attention was turned back to the shorter girl. Hyunjin cleared her throat, trying to ignore just how pretty Heejin was. Her eyes resemble those of a cute puppy and her hair, long and brown. 

“Y-Yeah, I was. That’s actually why I’m here. I usually go there after my shift, I wanted to know if you all wanted to just come with me.. we could hang out.” 

Sooyoung ran a hand through her hair. “Sure, we’re down. Are you paying?” 

Hyunjin was left dumbfounded by the question, her eyes widened. She didn’t have quite enough money that day to be treating all of them. She wished she could have though. “I-I don’t—“

“I’m just fucking with you. We’re down to hang out.” Sooyoung smiled, emitting a sense of comfort to the other girl. “This is my girlfriend Jungeun, her brother Younghoon, that’s Jiwoo, that’s Heejin, and I’m Sooyoung.” She introduced them all in a friendly manner. 

“I know who you are. Your face is plastered all over the sports channel sometimes… but I’m Hyunjin. My name is Hyunjin.” She repeated quickly.

_**//** _

They all walked together to get to the cafe. Which wasn’t very far since it was tied into the resort side. It took about two minutes to get to it. It was rather small, but it was definitely cozy. It smelled of freshly baked bread. All around the cafe were paintings or drawings created by customers. Framed and signed by said person. 

“So how does it work here?” Younghoon questioned, and Hyunjin quieted him softly. Not wanting to disturb the other customers present.

Since she worked at the resort, she was able to get ahead of other people that waited for a spot. She guided them over to a table. Sooyoung was surprised to see rather than silverware and plates waiting for them at each spot, was instead a board with paper stacked for each person. The center had an abundance of art tools, neatly set for the new customer that sat there. Which this time, was them. Heejin’s eyes were lit up with excitement as she quickly took a seat, immediately getting to work. 

“They don’t serve giant meals, just small things. Baked bread, pasta, cheese and crackers..” Hyunjin explained. “Nothing too crazy. Just things to snack on while you create art.” 

“This is right up my alley.” Jiwoo said cutely, grabbing some colored pencils and immediately drawing onto the paper provided. 

As they did that, their waiter came over to them, placing a small menu beside each of them. Before pulling out her notepad with a smile. “Could I interest you in some drinks?” 

Younghoon cleared his throat, before raising his hand slightly to get her attention. “Do you have alcohol by any chance?” 

Jungeun shook her head, scoffing in the process. The boy just laughed at her response, before listening to what the waiter had to say. “We do. However, it’s mainly wine products. Would you be interested in that?” 

“Hmmm. I think I’ll pass on that actually.” He smiled, letting the woman draw her attention elsewhere. The rest of them requested water, except for Jiwoo, who gladly ordered some wine. A raspberry flavored one at that. She said she tried it once and enjoyed it. 

While their drinks were brought in, they quickly all agreed on getting a simple order of bread rolls. Heejin was far too into whatever she was drawing to really care about what they ordered. She sat between Hyunjin and Jiwoo, while the others sat across from them. Jiwoo noticed Heejin’s drawing, gasping at how good she was. 

“Wow.. Heejin-ah, you’re an amazing artist,” She complimented, eyeing the drawing as the girl beside her grew red from the sudden compliment. Especially because her saying that had drawn the attention of Hyunjin, who was directly beside her. She didn’t say anything, but when their eyes met, Hyunjin gently smiled at her. In turn, Heejin did so as well, before turning back to what she was doing. 

Sooyoung played tic-tac-toe with Younghoon on his board while Jungeun drew pretty flowers on hers. When the blonde looked over at Sooyoung’s board, noticing she had only drawn stick figures. She giggled to herself, shaking her head at how cute she found it still. “So what brought you guys here? To this place I mean..” Hyunjin questioned as she took a few pieces of bread for herself.

“Sooyoung wanted to take us all out, we tend to do things like this together. Especially before the next semester.” Jiwoo explained, drawing circles on her paper. 

“Yeah. She has like mad money.” Younghoon added, and they all turned to him with worry on their face. “Sorry, didn’t mean to put that out there.” 

“Sooyoung just likes to spend a lot of time with her close friends. So she decided we go camping since we’ve done a lot of indoor things already.” Heejin quickly changed the subject. 

“Well I’m glad you chose this place. It’s popular among college students.” Hyunjin responded. 

“That’s funny. All I see is old people around here. Besides us youthful people.” Younghoon joked, making them all laugh as Hyunjin jumped to defend herself.

“I didn’t say it was popular a week before you all end up stressing to keep your grades up in a few days.” She quickly said back, hearing them all pretend to be offended. 

“Whatever. The place is nice, and this art cafe is pretty cool too. I’ve never heard of something like this actually. It wasn’t mentioned in the package.” Sooyoung pointed out, sparking yet another conversation. 

Hyunjin hadn’t said much after that, resorting back to her corner alone. But Heejin noticed, turning to her after she’d finished drawing. “Are you in college?” 

Hyunjin turned to the sound of the voice. “Huh? Me? No, I’m not in college.” 

“Must be nice.” Heejin muttered, before the others got their attention again. 

Sooyoung had her head leaning onto Jungeun’s shoulder. Their arms linked as they originally watched “We should probably start heading back before it gets too dark. We still have to hike back to the campsite.” 

“Oh right. You did have to ride a zipline to get to this side of the resort.” Hyunjin remembered suddenly. “You’re right then. It’s best you get to your site now so you can pack up and get outta here.” 

Sooyoung waved for the waiter, asking for the check. As she did that, Jungeun looked over everyones drawings. Jiwoo had drawn what looked like cupcakes or something, while Heejin had drawn a detailed picture of what seemed like the person across from her. Which was Sooyoung. She had drawn Sooyoung holding a basketball, almost in a spinning motion on her finger. Jungeun didn’t say a word though, not wanting to boost Sooyoung’s ego and have her teasing Heejin. Hyunjin had drawn a stick figure cat, it seems like she didn’t even try. 

Sooyoung had done the same, but she also did small doodles and wrote cute things like “I love Jungeun”, etc. Younghoon just had a bunch of games on his paper, mainly ones he’d played with Sooyoung like hangman and tic-tac-toe. They really did enjoy their time there, being able to relax after such a long day. They had a lot more to do however, especially the ride back home. Which Jungeun dreaded because she honestly didn’t want to go back home. 

Hyunjin noticed Heejin standing up to go and look at each drawing individually. Hyunjin followed, as the others stood up to head outside. “You should put that one at the front counter. It deserves to be up on this wall.” 

“No.. it’s not all that to be fair..” Heejin quickly denied the request, downplaying her talent. She tucked her hair behind her ear, feeling Hyunjin’s eyes on her. 

“Then let me have it at least.” 

“W-What? You want a drawing of Sooyoung?” 

“Sure. Why not? It’s a good drawing. Or I could steal it and say I drew it, then sell it for money.” She playfully said, making Heejin giggle, her face cutely scrunching up.

“Here. You can have it. I’ve drawn her enough things anyway.” She handed the drawing to Hyunjin, smiling softly. The girl grabbed it, and watched as Heejin walked off. She quickly turned to the counter, putting the drawing there and chasing after them. 

Sooyoung had her arm around Jungeun, showering her with kisses. Younghoon adjusted the bag on his back, while Jiwoo talked to him about whatever. He was hardly listening because truthfully, she spoke too damn fast sometimes. 

“You guys ready?” Younghoon questioned, before they turned back to see Heejin walking away from Hyunjin. Which Sooyoung took note of. 

Heejin quickly gathered up with her friends. “Yeah. I’m ready.” 

“Thanks for a fun time. We really appreciate it.” Sooyoung smiled, shaking Hyunjin’s hand.

“It’s no problem. You should come soon, ya know, when school isn’t kicking your ass.” She laughed. 

“Gotcha.” Sooyoung winked, pointing finger guns at her playfully before they headed off back onto the trail.

_**//** _

Jiwoo let out a loud sigh, wiping her forehead as if she was sweating. “Can’t we just stay here another night? Just sleep now and wake up in the morning and leave?” 

Sooyoung quickly packed up their things, shaking her head. “Wish we could. But I have a game tomorrow. And Jungeun’s been away from home for too long.” 

Younghoon agreed quickly. “Yeah, can’t have my mom tripping on us again.” 

They quickly made their way through the trail, getting back to the truck and putting their things inside. The ride back felt long, the others fell asleep as expected. But Jungeun stayed awake, stealing glances from each other every so often. The blonde had smiled softly to herself as she watched the road lights passing by since the sun had disappeared from the sky. She thought about their weekend together with their friends. But mostly with Sooyoung and how she truly just couldn’t get enough of her and being in her presence. It always felt new. Those same butterflies she’d gotten when she first met her hadn’t really changed even now. It had to be unhealthy to feel such a fluttering feeling inside when you’re around someone. 

Sooyoung dropped everyone off one by one. Kissing Jungeun before she’d gotten out of the car and helping her with her things. When she stepped inside, she noticed Jungeun’s mother passed out in the seat her father usually would sit in. Beer bottles empty and lingering around her. 

“Yeah. Mom's a drunk now.” Younghoon muttered quietly. “Dad hasn’t been around much. So all she does is go to work, come home, yell at us, get drunk, yell at us some more. Pass out.” 

“Jesus…” 

“Yeah. Sad. But life isn’t always perfect.” He explained. “Thanks for the trip though. It was much needed.” He pulled her into a hug, and to his surprise she hugged him back. When he pulled away, he ruffled her hair and ran upstairs. Jungeun came from the kitchen holding a water bottle. 

“You should get going, before she sees you.” She whispered, and Sooyoung pouted cutely, and it took everything in Jungeun to not kiss her right then and there. 

“I had a lot of fun with you.. I’ll see you tomorrow right?”

“Of course.” Jungeun smiled, hugging the girl tightly, allowing herself to relax into her arms. Sooyoung rested her chin atop the crown of Jungeun’s head, letting out a long sigh. 

“I love you.” 

“I love you too.” Sooyoung smiled, leaving without another word. Jungeun just smiled softly as she watched her girlfriend jog over to her car. Throwing up a peace sign with a wide goofy smile before getting into the truck. 

Jungeun watched her drive off, before closing the door behind her and walking to the living room. Her mom was still asleep, snoring at this point with half a bottle of beer in her hand, nearly slipping from the weak grasp she held on it. 

The blonde grabbed it from her hand gently, before sitting back on the sofa and drinking from the bottle.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So there’s going to be another long chapter after this one, and then im gonna take a break to focus on my other fics. 
> 
> But just know this chapter will be the last feel good 1 for a while because.. well, good things dont last forever :) 
> 
> Overall, hope you enjoyed and I hope you are ready to see what comes next. Its not going to be good, but at least we’ll experience it together ;) 
> 
> Take care of yourselves and Stay safe. I will see you _very_ soon

**Author's Note:**

> this is the part where I ask if I did good or not? 
> 
> Did I? 
> 
> LOL. Well, I enjoyed writing for another pairing anyway. It was different and the dynamic is, different too. So yeah. If you enjoyed, please say so! It helps me know people are interested and want me to continue. 😊
> 
> Stay safe everyone! And rest, take care of yourselves.


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